Risk of Rain 2: Rusted Key Location And Uses

Complete Guide on Rusted Key Item!

From early access to further down into the game’s launch version, the rusted key remained a mixed bag of experience. The earlier version involved getting green to legendary items if you have more stacks of Rusted keys. Then there was the issue of spotting a rusted box. Because, by design, it blended pretty well with the objects of the terrain, making it a feat actually to find a rusted box from afar. However, everything about the Risk of Rain 2 Rusted Key and Rusted Box changed with the Anniversary Update on March 25, 2021. Before we dive into the changes, let us first understand what exactly a Rusted Key is and what it does.

Besides, obtaining high-end items and equipping them to smoothen the journey is the narrative of Risk of Rain 2. It matters not if you are playing with Huntress or using the robots like MUL-T and Rex; what matters is the critical items all these survivors equip while doing runs.

Key Highlights
  • The Rusted Key in Risk of Rain 2 is a common item that guarantees you a Rusty Box.
  • You can use the Rusted key to open large chests in the game world.
  • To obtain the Rusted key, complete the ‘Keyed up’ challenge, which includes defeating a Teleport Boss. You can get the key as a random drop from the enemies.
  • Locating a Larger chest in the game can be quite a challenge which requires you to check the object to make sure it’s a chest. These Rusted Boxes and Large chests will grant you legendary items which will help you later in the game.

Risk of Rain 2 Rusted Key

RarityCategoryUsesUnlock
CommonUtility
AlBlacklist
On Stage Begin Effect
Open large Chest Boxes
Get multiple items without
buying them from the chest
Defeat a Teleport Boss to Complete
the ‘Keyed up’ challenge

Uses

The Rusted key is a common item in Risk of Rain 2 that guarantees the spawn of a Rusty Box, which drops items from one or all rarities. In the game’s current state, stacking more Rusted Key items does not guarantee a legendary item drop. This scenario was before the Anniversary update. Currently, opening a chest by using the Rusted Keys has an 80% chance of dropping a green item and 20% for the legendary one.

You can use the Rusted Key for two purposes. First, opening large chests located in the world. Second, it spawns Rusty boxes at Teleporter boss, and the key is consumed after opening it.

Risk of Rain 2 Rusted Key
Rusted Key Stats

How To Obtain Rusted Key

To get the chance of obtaining the Rusted Key items by defeating enemies, players are first required to complete ‘Keyed Up’ challenge. It involves defeating a Teleporter Boss in just 15 seconds only. There is no compulsion on the selection of the boss. You can do it on the first environment or the last one – the choice is all yours.

After pulling off a strategy that completes the challenge, you will get Risk of Rain 2 Rusted Key as a random drop from the enemies.

Rusted Key Problems

One of the many problems players faced earlier was the difficulty in finding the chests. It awarded players who had rusted key(s) in their inventory. The chests looked very similar to any other rock or a boulder on the ground. To spot one, players had to get close to the object to identify if it was a large chest or just another rock. It was confusing and frustrating at the same time.

Another issue was the number of Rusted Key a player held. Upon opening a large chest, if a player held numerous stacks of the said item, the chance of a legendary item drop was increased dramatically. We remember in our runs, while playing with the Artificer, we interacted with the Shrine of Order and changed our items to 40 plus Rusted Keys. As a result, after stumbling upon nearly 3-4 Rusty boxes and large chests, each guaranteed a legendary item. We do not encourage you to try this trick by interacting with the Shrine of Order. Because, the said shrine is infamous for destroying runs by replacing useful items with trash ones. Plus, stacking Rusted Key items no longer has any effect in increasing the drop rate of legendary loot items.

Updates to Risk of Rain 2 Rusted Key

As mentioned before, Anniversary update brought tons of little changes to the Risk of Rain 2, and the Rusted Key item also benefited from it. Here are the official patch notes, highlighting the much-requested changes.

Risk of Rain 2 rusted key
Rusted Key – Patch Notes

Now that you know everything about the Rusted Key, are you going to grab as many as possible? Let us know more about it in the comments section below.

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Irfan Ansari is a Senior Editor and Guides Writer on eXputer. He has seven years of Video Game Journalism experience and has been gaming for more than 22 years. Over his editorial career, he has gained experience at multiple sites, including TheGamer and VeryAli Gaming. Irfan has also earned a degree in Writing and Editing from the University of Michigan. Learn some more about Irfan's gaming journey on his Steam, PSN, and Xbox profiles.

Experience: 7+ Years || Worked for TheGamer and VeryAli Gaming

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