ARK: SURVIVAL ASCENDED LAUNCHES TODAY ON XBOX SERIES X|S WITH CROSS-PLATFORM GAMEPLAY AND PC MODS

Studio Wildcard today launched ARK: Survival Ascended (ASA), a next-generation remake of the beloved ARK: Survival Evolved game, onto Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC platforms. Developed in partnership with Grove Street Games and Instinct Games, this inaugural battle between console and PC Survivors has begun with ASA’s new cross-platform multiplayer capabilities. Survivors can now form online tribes across different gaming platforms and work together to survive and thrive on the ARK.

Also for the first time ever, ARK mods crafted on PC will run on Xbox Series X|S, providing mod makers a new platform to feature their amazing creations and elevating the gaming experience for players across platforms. Everything from new weapons, armor, and creatures to fully-fledged game modes and high-quality maps are now easily available through a dedicated new Mod-browser found directly within the game.
Watch the ARK: Survival Ascended spotlight trailer featuring some of the cross-platform mods now available on Xbox Series X/S HERE: youtube.com/watch?v=F9HDgMT-Wcs

ARK: Survival Ascended harnesses the cutting-edge power of Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) for huge improvements and enhancements to the visuals and gameplay. ARK’s codebase has been fully rewritten, and its artwork recreated by hand to take full advantage of UE5.

ARK: Survival Ascended includes free access to all of ARK’s worlds, including Scorched Earth, Aberration, Extinction, ARK Genesis Part 1, and ARK Genesis Part 2! With today’s launch on Xbox Series X|S, The Island is available with subsequent expansion worlds to be added on a regular basis. ASA will have its own content roadmap, including gameplay/QOL changes, new DLC, seasonal events, and more.

NEW FEATURES INCLUDE:

Unreal Engine 5 Delivers:
- Nanite mesh rendering allows incredibly high-detail assets directly within the game, which gets scaled and streamed onto the graphics processor in real-time, tremendously increasing the visual fidelity of ASA. This delivers more environmental details, including realistic rocky textures, accurate tree patterning, and flourishing fauna.
- With fully dynamic “Lumen”, light now bounces realistically off of hundreds of millions of triangles for extreme detail.
- Chaos, a physics destruction system, simulates large-scale destruction in real-time. Blasting a base with a rocket launcher has never looked more realistic!
Building Revamp: ASA has revamped building systems so players can construct the bases of their dreams with over 15 new structures, from tilesets to decor to gameplay-enhancing TEK Teleporters, combined with QOL improvements like structure snappoint improvements, raising/lowering foundations, to provide players with a lot more choice and reliability when constructing their bases!
Ascended Physics System: Dynamic water so every creature creates waves, ripples, splashes, and bubbles as they move through fluids, and fully interactive physical foliage where every blade of grass, bush, and tree reacts to characters, explosions, projectiles, and physics objects. Knock down a tree and see it crash into other trees and disturb foliage on its way down to smacking into the grass below it! Demolish a building and watch the pieces break apart realistically, interacting with the grass and water as they fall.
Extensive QOL and Gameplay Improvements: Thorough Quality of Life revamps in every area: redesigned User Interfaces, dynamic navigation for intelligent creature pathfinding, new Camera and Map systems, Dino Tracking System, Wild babies, added Structures and Items, and much more.
Cross-Platform Modding: Download and play new custom content created by players, including new maps, creatures, items, and game modes, through a dedicated Mod-browser found directly within the game! Enjoy an endless stream of ARK content as the creativity and talent of the community are fully unleashed for the first time ever across gaming platforms! Through Overwolf’s CurseForge platform, mod authors are already building out exciting new content for ARK’s fanbase, including more dinosaurs, structures and weapons, while game developers such as Blue Isle Studios and Skymap Games are creating DLC-level Premium Mods.
Cross-Platform Multiplayer: Form online tribes across different gaming platforms and work together to survive and thrive on the ARK!
Multiplayer Options: Supports public online multiplayer for up to 70 players, private-session multiplayer for up to 8 players, and local split-screen for 2 or 4 players.
Photo Mode: Use the built-in capabilities to share epic screenshots and thumbnails with friends. With a deep dropdown menu of settings, you can get the perfect shots of your favorite dino, put on your director's hat, and start filming the ARK movies you envisioned!

The definitive survival experience returns better than ever! Create a Survivor, form a tribe, and then tame, train, breed & ride dinosaurs within a living ecosystem. Monitor your food, water, temperature, and weather patterns. Slowly expand outwards, then start to harvest, build structures, farm crops, customize each visual design, and proceed to explore to uncover the true nature of The Island and the worlds beyond.

ARK: Survival Ascended is now available on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC for $44.99 and is also available on Steam. The PlayStation 5 version is scheduled to release in early December.