ARK Survival Evolved Review

After 2 years and an outstanding amount of players in the community ARK has officially launched and here’s our review.

I have played ARK before but this was back in the days when it first launched into Early Access and didn’t have the stability or content it has now. So here I am 2 years later starting fresh, wondering what the wonderful dino world has in store for me now. I spawn in, wake up and have a good old scratch of the strange diamond shaped piece of tech in my arm and then bang! I’m attacked by what I can only describe as the quickest Raptor like dinosaur known to man. This is when I realize that yet again ARK is not going to be a walk in the park.

For those of you reading this thinking what on earth is the guy on and what is he talking about? Well ARK is a survival sandbox game that simply just drops you in the past without so much as a pot to pee in. Don’t worry though as its not just you. You’re surrounded by hundreds of dinosaurs and other players from around the world who have been stranded here too. The game allows, but really forces, the player to fend for themselves by collecting materials from surrounding areas and supply drops. You then have to use these to craft items such as weapons, storage and shelter. This doesn’t sound too right hard right? Well you’re wrong, as within minutes of waking up on that glorious beach as mentioned before I was dead and having to re-spawn.

It is brilliant because the game doesn’t even give you any hints or tips on how to play, you literally just have to figure it out and hope for the best. On the plus side every time you die, whatever items you’ve collected will stay at your death site for you to go back and collect so not all is lost. ARK has a very steep learning curve that some people may find tricky to master but once you get the hang of it the game truly opens up for you.

Crafting is a huge part of the game, as this is what helps you get the most out of ARK. Imagine heading towards a T-Rex with a stone axe and thinking, “yeah this bad lad is mine” only to have it instantly kill you forcing you to then start again from scratch. What you have to do instead is unlock various different crafting recipes as you level up throughout the game and which in turn helps you build bigger and better weapons, bases and all round useful survival gear, providing you have the right number of resources to make them.

Now to the part you’ve more then likely been waiting for, the dinosaurs. There are a mountain of them out there in the world of ARK, some friendly who simply just walk on past without a care in the world and then there are the ones that are literally just out to get you. There has been a lot of focus on these monstrous lizards from the minute ARK was announced way back in the Early Access days as who doesn’t want to play in a game where dinosaurs rule. The dinosaurs themselves look brilliant from the legendary T-Rex down to those crazy little Compys that just seem to want to peck and chew everything. For me this is where the game truly shines through because the developers have nailed the movement, behavior and sound of the dinosaurs to a tee. When it’s dark in game with no torch to light your way and you suddenly hear the noise of a dinosaur roaring or approaching, it can be a very nervous time but it all adds to the feel of the game. The dinosaurs can also be tamed and can be used for you to ride on, or if you’re lucky enough to have a pterodactyl then you can just take to the skies. Great for you at first, but not when someone else has one and you’re running away it’s only a matter of time before you get picked up and dropped off a cliff.

Lastly, there has been a recent update for ARK on launch day which has included a mountain of new stuff including game end content, a new storyline, full orchestral soundtrack and the Ragnarok DLC. The DLC is a free expansion that was built by modders and adds a new island to the game. These I have yet to try out but once I do I will be updating the review straight away.

Overall, I would definitely recommend ARK to anyone and I personally think Studio Wildcard has done a fantastic job over the years. It’s got everything you need to keep you gaming for a long time and mainly it has dinosaurs for you to tame and ride about on. What’s not to love about that? Nothing.

Our Rate : 7.2/10