Powered by Unreal Engine 4, Ark: Survival Evolved takes on the survival genre with a unique blend of emergent multiplayer cooperation and competition. Players awake naked and starving on the beach of a mysterious island among a herd of other confused humans. On ARK, they must then hunt, harvest, craft, research technology, and build shelters to protect against scorching days, freezing nights, volatile weather systems, dangerous wildlife, and potential enemies.

Use cunning strategy and tactics to tame and ride the many dinosaurs and other primeval creatures roaming the dynamic, persistent ecosystems across land, sea, air, and even underground. Build your character’s strengths and gain items, skills, and pet creatures using in-depth role-playing systems. Start a tribe with hundreds of other players to survive and dominate competing tribes...and ultimately discover the ARK’s true purpose.

Studio Wildcard updated ARK: Survival Evolved with an arsenal of highly anticipated dinos, mechanics and features -- but the most significant addition wasn’t standard procedure. By introducing procedurally generated maps into ARK’s already huge geographical landscape, Studio Wildcard gives Survivors infinite choices to generate random ARKs (maps) and to tailor them to their liking.

Players can determine a myriad of landscape options from the heights of mountains, depths of valleys, and the number of lakes, rivers or oceans, to the kinds of each biomes they want, and more! Procedurally generated maps bolster ARK’s replay value and player creativity level, adding a whole new dimension to the already immense game.

Also in update v248, three new creatures join the fray with the prey-grabbing Kaprosuchus, the boulder-tossing Chalicotherium, and the oxygen-giving Diplocaulus making their debut. Also, the ARK “Explorer Note System” finds its way into both the main Island and ARK: Scorched Earth. Found within 130 treasure chests and available now, these chests contain the stories of actual inhabitants who have previously lived on the isle, as well as provide a temporary XP buff to those Survivors who collect them. These 3D Explorer and Story Notes are punctuated with powerful personalities from a Roman Centurion to an Ancient Chinese Warrior to an Egyptian Priestess, each one chronicling their experiences on ARK and unveiling kernels of the story secrets they have uncovered. What will they reveal about the mysteries that surround the ARK?

The full ARK: Survival Evolved Update v248 features a broad spectrum of additions, including:

• New Feature: Procedurally Generated ARKs! Generate your very own totally unique, customized or randomized world!
• New Dinos: Kaprosuchus Paludentium, Diplodocus Insulaprincep, and Chalicotherium Obsideoquus
• New Mechanics:
  • You can now directly wield your weapons when mount-riding smaller Dinos!
  • Explorer Notes
• Tree Platforms now have +70% HP and +50% resistance to explosive damage
• Neuter/Spay Option for Tamed Dinos (irreversible!)

Tame and ride one of 70-plus amazing dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasts, including gargantuan creatures on a scale never before seen in video games! Fly a Pterodactyl squadron over snow-capped mountains, race through the deep jungle with your pack of trained Raptors, tromp through a fortified enemy base along a convoy of gigantic Brontosaurus, or chase down prey on the back of a raging T-Rex. Players will quickly learn that dinosaurs aren’t the only dangerous creatures on the island. Other players are organizing rebel tribes to accumulate resources, experience, re-spawn points, and to construct sprawling villages and cities, with technology spanning the primitive stone-age to the modern electric-powered era and beyond. And they will fight to destroy anything they see as a threat.

Ark: Survival Evolved will include Oculus Rift VR/Morpheus support and a thorough integration of Steam community features such as Steam Economy and Steam Workshop for custom maps and mods. Players will also be able to host private/LAN servers, and have access to a custom-built version of the Unreal 4 Editor for creating mods. The world of ARK is designed to be player-oriented and ever-expanding!