At present, Studio WildCard introduced that Ark 2, the sequel to 2017’s Ark: Survival Developed, is getting delayed a second time into 2024 – however within the meantime, a next-gen model of the unique recreation is popping out in August to maintain us busy.
In a group blogpost providing a growth roadmap, Studio WildCard defined that the explanation for Ark 2’s delay to subsequent 12 months was as a result of challenges working with Unreal Engine 5:
“Our objective is to make ARK 2 one of the best recreation it may be and supply a really distinctive and rewarding expertise for gamers. Unreal Engine 5 is extremely new know-how to us (and all builders), and we intention to make use of this cutting-edge tech to its fullest potential whereas making a recreation with never-before-achieved scope at Studio Wildcard. As we study extra concerning the engine and develop the sequel, now we have tailored our workflows and adjusted our pipelines to accommodate this new next-generation paradigm, and due to every part that includes, we’d like extra time for growth.”
Moreover, Studio WildCard acknowledged that these challenges additionally imply that Ark 2 is not going to be backward appropriate. So which means no launch of Ark 2 on Xbox One or PS4.
However there’s some excellent news for Ark 1 followers. As a result of Ark 2 has “some fairly important design modifications from the unique recreation” and will not attraction to those that want “Souls-like fight, primitive-only weaponry, and strict third-person mechanics – and an general “very severe” tone,” Studio WildCard is releasing a current-gen model of Ark 1 on PC, Xbox Sequence, and PS5 in August of 2023 “to make sure that followers can proceed to benefit from the ARK they know for years to come back.”
It is known as Ark: Survival Ascended, and comes with The Island, battle royale spinoff Survival of the Fittest, and “all of the ‘non-canon DLC maps'”. In addition to graphical and efficiency upgrades, it additionally consists of cross-platform multiplayer and cross-progression, and cross-platform modding supported by Overwolf.
That is a variety of content material, however the buying scheme is a bit complicated. Xbox Sequence X, S, and PC gamers can solely get it by buying the Ark Respawned Bundle for $49.99, which incorporates each Ark: Survival Ascended and Ark 2, and can grant entry to an unique one-month closed beta of Ark 2 in 2024. The bundle will solely be out there for the primary 12 months after launch of Survival Ascended, after which each video games will likely be out there individually.
In the meantime, PS5 gamers can buy Survival Ascended as a standalone recreation at launch for $39.99. DLC packs may even be out there individually on each platforms.
Lastly, Studio WildCard has a brand new canonical story DLC deliberate for launch in This autumn of 2023 together with 4 new creatures.
Ark 2 was first introduced by way of a flowery Vin Diesel cameo at The Recreation Awards again in 2020, on the time with a 2022 launch date, but it surely was later delayed into 2023. We gave the unique Ark: Survival Developed a 7.7/10 assessment, praising its strategic moments and fight however noting its AI bugs and grind.
Rebekah Valentine is a information reporter for IGN. You will discover her on Twitter @duckvalentine.
