Ark: Survival Evolved

Ark: Survival Evolved, keyword Evolved. As a concept, it’s quite like Minecraft. Awaken in an unfamiliar and hostile environment, gather resources and defend yourself against the dangers of the island. But once again, the keyword here is evolved. It’s got the same fundamentals as the blocky open world, but filled with hordes of deadly dinosaurs, all ready to strike the moment you step within aggro range. Your first night, well, more like your first few spawns, are going to be tough until you learn the ins and outs of the game. Trust me though, it’s worth it, Ark is a ton of fun and can be tough to put down.

Some of the first choices and steps come before you even start playing the game. First you have to ask yourself, do you want to play peacefully and for fun, or are you of a more competitive nature? Those looking to avoid too much conflict with other players should choose a PvE server where players cannot harm each other or destroy their buildings. It’s nice for learning and getting a foothold in the game, but potentially boring further down the line. PvP, however, is one of those great double-edged swords. It’s fun to tranquilize someone and mess with them, but you’ll experience some unfortunate deaths at the hands of your server-mates. It’s fair game, but there is always the potential for griefing and a lot of frustration. Either way, interacting with other players is a bunch of fun. If you can, find a server friends play on, or narrow down what you’re looking for in their descriptions.

Alright, now you’re finally in the game, character created and awake on the beach. At first it’s best to not worry about exploring too much or getting too close to dangerous dinos. Instead, gather up the necessary resources to create a little shack for yourself. In Ark, shelter is incredibly important. Some dinos can break through the weaker walls, but for the most part having a secure location can save you from restarting a lot of work. When you log out, your body doesn’t disappear like most online games. When you log out in Ark, your body falls to the ground on the spot, so make sure that spot is safe. A nice looking house and location can come once you’ve built some infrastructure around yourself like armor, weapons, food, and water. Otherwise you’ll just be wandering the island getting wrecked by bugs and raptors left and right.

Now to the fun part, why we’re all playing this game, right? Taming dinos! The slingshot is the first way you can tame, but I recommend you don’t waste your time with it too much. It’s good as an intro to taming until you can craft yourself a bow and tranq arrows. Let’s run through a few of the dinos you should tame and what they do.

Dodo - The Magikarp of Ark. Very little use besides some early meat and hide, but who knows, maybe there's something greater around the bend?

Carbonemys - A nice mobile chest. They’re slow but sturdy and can carry around resources for you while trying to set up a base.

Trike - These guys are an early game favorite. They can pack a punch and can act as a guardian if you find yourself in danger.

Stegosaurus - Stegos are an early to mid game tame, but are amazing if acquired early. Slow as hell, but if you use their attack next to bushes on the ground it harvests ALL of the berries in the vicinity. Feed your herbivores all in one go and then use the narcoberries to craft more tranqs.

Pteranodon - The first realistic flying mount in the game. Being able to fly completely changes your experience, you can accomplish quite a lot more when you can travel great distances

Spinosaurus - You’ve got a sizable group of dinos now, nice. When you’re in need of a real offensive force, turn to the Spino. They can be quick, they hold a lot of weight and can become an incredibly fearsome power in your arsenal.

Beezlebufo - My personal favorite, the Beezlebufo is part hilarious, part extremely useful. Cementing paste is a bit of a rare commodity while crafting and these guys churn it out without breaking a sweat. On top of that, they’re extremely fast mounts and can hop all over the place, making for some efficient travel.

After playing a few times, likely dying many times, you’ve probably started to recognize what works and what doesn’t and now it’s time to start exploring other parts of the island. There are a lot of beautiful vistas and locations, even a couple hidden ones too, so go make a kickass base and fill it with T-Rexes. There are a myriad of other really cool dinosaurs within the game and the best way to learn about them is to see if they’re friendly or not!

Robert Wery