Ark 2 Delayed Again, to 2024; But a Next-Gen Version of the First Game Is Out in August

By | March 31, 2023

Today, Studio WildCard announced that Ark 2, the sequel to 2017’s Ark: Survival Evolved, is getting delayed a second time into 2024 – but in the meantime, a next-gen version of the original game is coming out in August to keep us busy.

In a community blogpost offering a development roadmap, Studio WildCard explained that the reason for Ark 2’s delay to next year was due to challenges working with Unreal Engine 5:

“Our goal is to make ARK 2 the best game it can be and provide a truly exceptional and rewarding experience for players. Unreal Engine 5 is incredibly new technology to us (and all developers), and we aim to use this cutting-edge tech to its fullest potential while creating a game with never-before-achieved scope at Studio Wildcard. As we learn more about the engine and develop the sequel, we have adapted our workflows and adjusted our pipelines to accommodate this new next-generation paradigm, and because of everything that involves, we need more time for development.”

Additionally, Studio WildCard acknowledged that these challenges also mean that Ark 2 will not be backward compatible. So that means no release of Ark 2 on Xbox One or PS4.

But there’s some good news for Ark 1 fans. Because Ark 2 has “some pretty significant design changes from the original game” and may not appeal to those who prefer “Souls-like combat, primitive-only weaponry, and strict third-person mechanics – and an overall “very serious” tone,” Studio WildCard is releasing a current-gen version of Ark 1 on PC, Xbox Series, and PS5 in August of 2023 “to ensure that fans can continue to enjoy the ARK they know for years to come.”

It’s called Ark: Survival Ascended, and comes with The Island, battle royale spinoff Survival of the Fittest, and “all the ‘non-canon DLC maps'”. As well as graphical and performance upgrades, it also includes cross-platform multiplayer and cross-progression, and cross-platform modding supported by Overwolf.

That’s a lot of content, but the purchasing scheme is a bit confusing. Xbox Series X, S, and PC players can only get it by purchasing the Ark Respawned Bundle for $49.99, which includes both Ark: Survival Ascended and Ark 2, and will grant access to an exclusive one-month closed beta of Ark 2 in 2024. The bundle will only be available for the first year after launch of Survival Ascended, after which both games will be available separately.

Ark 2 – Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase 2022

Meanwhile, PS5 players can purchase Survival Ascended as a standalone game at launch for $39.99. DLC packs will also be available separately on both platforms.

Finally, Studio WildCard has a new canonical story DLC planned for release in Q4 of 2023 including four new creatures.

Ark 2 was first announced via a fancy Vin Diesel cameo at The Game Awards back in 2020, at the time with a 2022 release date, but it was later delayed into 2023. We gave the original Ark: Survival Evolved a 7.7/10 review, praising its strategic moments and combat but noting its AI bugs and grind.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

Source