Game Updates v201 and v202

Hi guys! In a span of about one week, two new creatures have arrived in ARK! Gigantopithecus arrived in v201, while Doedicurus rolled in to the game in v202! Both updates brought in other cool things as well, like a mysterious new species of plant that actually attacks intruders!

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In v201, the main feature that was introduced was Gigantopithecus! This Bigfoot-like creature can be tamed non-violently, and survivors can ride on its shoulders and be thrown up high by it! Also, it can wear headgear, and autonomously gathers Fibre while wandering!

Scuba gear also arrived in this update, allowing survivors to explore the depths of the ocean with proper equipment that prolongs their oxygen levels, enhancing vision, and more!

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In v202, Doedicurus arrived! It is a very well-armoured animal, having a large hard shell on its back to protect it from predators. In fact, it retreats into a ball when facing attackers! It also has a extremely powerful spiked tail, which can shatter the largest of rocks, as well as devastate the fiercest of enemies. Like Gigantopithecus, it harvests Stone autonomously when not being ridden. Additionally, riders can 'shell-charge' on Doedicurus, where it curls into a nearly indestructible ball and rolls rapidly!

The mysterious Plant Species X dropped in to the game in this update as well! It is grown in Crop Plots like other plants, but becomes an organic automated turret when it matures! It is an excellent choice for base defence, and is especially deadly towards flying enemies!

The Spray Painter is another new item in this patch! It allows for convenient bulk painting of objects!

Survivors riding Pteranodons can now do a barrel roll! In fact, it is a powerful attack and speed boost, activated by using the Crouch button, which is the C key by default!

Additionally, survivors must now be of level 40 and above to be able to tame Gigantopithecus, at least non-violently. This leads up to the introduction of a non-violent Taming Skill, which will arrive in time to come!

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Mesopithecus, Smoke Grenades, DX12 support and another SotF event will be arriving this weekend!

-Skyhawk :D

ARK Digest #14 Highlights

Hey guys! Phew, it's been a while since my latest post!

This week's issue of ARK Digest is awesome, because we get to learn A LOT about what is upcoming in the future!

If you guys aren't aware yet, there's a modding contest being held, and the prizes include thousands of dollars, Alienware computers, NVIDIA graphics cards, as well as sponsored server listings on TopARKServers!

If you have the interest, you should give it a shot, whether you're a professional modder or a total newbie!

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The newly added Gigantopithecus can equip headwear, and this is the first step towards introducing the ability to arm creatures with both weapons and armour!

The first of the musical instruments -- war drums -- will arrive in September!

The Tek tier will consist of many cool things like teleportation chambers!

There will soon be non-explosive primitive tech that will be able to damage stone structures!

In time to come, creatures will leave footprints, and these can be used for tracking purposes!

Also, players will be able to choose the orientation of structures while placing them! Yay :D

Check these out! Below, you can see concepts for both the Ballista, as well as the Plant Turret! These are just some of the upcoming weapon options survivors will have access to!

The Ballista looks very awesome! It can be placed on structures and Platform Saddles, so survivors can use it for both defence and offence!

The Plant Turret will be planted in Crop Plots, which can also be placed on structures! It would require a constant flow of water, so it is good as a non-mobile base defence!

Game Update v200

Hi! Wow, we sure have come a long way together with ARK since it went Early Access on June 2nd! v200 is here...

We have skipped a few versions, jumping from v196 to v200, to better coincide with the release of the new Survival of the Fittest game mode, Total Conversions, as well as the ARK Server Management Tool!

We got the Re-Fertiliser back in v196, and it allows survivors to regrow foliage which were once harvested, including bushes, trees, and even rocks!

In v200, the SotF game mode is ready for everyone to play! To do so, make sure you download the Total Conversion of SotF from the Steam Workshop. Once it has been installed, you should see the Total Conversion appear at the bottom right of the main menu in ARK!

Click it to relaunch the game using SotF as the Total Conversion to load, and then off you go! Find servers which are running SotF to join the fun!

Dino Dossier - Microraptor

Hey guys! I know, it's been reallyyy long since the last Raptor Raiders post. Time to wrap it up! Microraptor is a tiny terror, its size not hindering its ability to harass other creatures!

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Basic Information
Common Name: Microraptor
Species: Microraptor gnarilongus
Time: Early Cretaceous
Diet: Carnivore
Temperament: Aggressive

1 Month Anniversary!

Hey guys! Still in the midst of a busy week, but I thought I'd make a quick post today because hey, one month anniversary! I've really been having a lot of fun doing this! :D

As I write this, the new game mode, Survival of the Fittest, is on the verge of being released! Just a few more hours...

Also coming is 'Total Conversion' for modding which brings in a lot more customisation capabilities for mods!

Can't wait to play SotF!

-Skyhawk :D

Dino Dossier - Utahraptor

Hey guys! Today we have Utahraptor, the second in the Raptor Raiders series! Utahraptor uses its speed to its advantage; everything it does is fast, like when it is ambushing, chasing and killing its prey!

Also, the Dino Dossier for Tusoteuthis, which is a giant squid, was just revealed today! We were previously expecting it on Wednesday, but who's complaining? HAHA

Without further ado, let's get on to the details on Utahraptor!

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Basic Information
Common Name: Raptor
Species: Utahraptor prime
Time: Early Cretaceous
Diet: Carnivore
Temperament: Aggressive

Dino Dossier - Oviraptor

Hi guys! So here we have the first raptor in Raptor Raiders, our second DD mini-series! Oviraptor's name is Latin for 'egg taker', and while eggs may or may not have been a part of its diet in reality, in ARK, Oviraptor does indeed feed on eggs, taking them stealthily from other creatures' nests!

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Basic Information

Common Name: Oviraptor

Species: Oviraptor philodator

Time: Late Cretaceous

Diet: Carnivore

Temperament: Skittish

Raptor Raiders - Dino Dossiers Mini-Series!

Hey guys! Welcome to our second Dino Dossier mini-series!

The second mini-series revolves around raptors, and is named Raptor Raiders because these dinos are particularly speedy and remind me of raiders which come and go in the blink of an eye!

The first raptor to appear in our series would be... Oviraptor, the egg thief! You could say that it is a nest raider! ;)

We will then have Utahraptor, the speedy killer, and Microraptor, the tiny terror, bringing up the rear!

-Skyhawk :D

Game Update v194

Hi guys! There has been a new patch deployed, so just a quick run through of the new features!

Survivors can now use the Flare Gun while riding dinos! It will shoot directly upwards. At the moment, players will not be able to aim the Flare Gun; this would likely only be possible once the devs have implemented the firing of weapons on mounts!

Server Admins now have the option to disable taming for specific creatures!

Female creatures will only lay eggs when Mate-Boosted!

The Alpha variants of Carnotaurus and Utahraptor have been added! Harvesting Alpha predators will give only Prime Meat now!

And lastly, some fixes for Bear Traps! Survivors can now consume items and cannot mount a dino while caught in a trap! At the same time, creatures cannot be ridden while snared in a trap!

That's it for this update! Another reminder that the Dino Dossier for Allosaurus will likely be revealed later today!

Also, keep a lookout for our new mini-series, coming right up!

-Skyhawk :D

ARK Digest #13 Highlights

Hi guys! This is an extended ARK Digest to make up for absence of the Q&A section from last week's Digest, which was not put in due to time constraints on the developers' end!

With that, let's get straight to the Q&A then!

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I did actually wonder how underwater bases would work... and I got the answer! Underwater bases will use a special 'Tek' tier of structures which are made to be waterproof and vacuum-sealed. A device will provide oxygen to the enclosed base, and an airlock can be built as a point of access that will not flood the base! This is great for a mobile water base on an Elasmosaurus as well!

Bioluminescent creatures will come to the game, especially in the oceans! Jellyfish and prehistoric anglerfish will be some of the animals providing some light in the depths!

More melee weaponry will be added, including knives, swords and shields! There will be three tiers of shields which can be used together with most other melee weapons!

Game Update v193

Hey! v193 has been deployed, and these are the additions and changes it brings!

Survivors will now be able to utilise two sizes (normal and large) of Bear Traps to trap creatures, including other players!

Stone Behemoth Gates have arrived! Players can now build big dino pens without requiring metal!

A more powerful variant of the already dominating Tyrannosaurus has been added! The Alpha Tyrannosaurus is bigger and badder, and has a unique colour scheme! Apart from obtaining a ton of experience points and resources from defeating one, survivors can also get a Trike Bone Helmet Skin from it! This is the Trike counterpart to the earlier Rex Bone Helmet Skin! (I'm so happy!!! How about a Bone Helmet collection?! :O)

While they cannot be tamed now, they boost the stats of all nearby carnivores, wild and tamed, due to its Alpha status! Whether it'll be tameable in the future depends on the community's opinion which the developers want to know; currently, the majority prefers it to be untameable, but a significant part also feel that it should be a per-server option (meaning server admins can decide)!

Gamescom 2015 Trailer + Upcoming Features

Hi! It's been really hectic these few days, not just for me personally but for ARK as well! The Survival of the Fittest event was a success, and following that, more awesome things have revealed themselves as well!

If anyone noticed, I have actually been following an alternating sequence of Dino Dossier and non-DD posts up till now, but I thought it would be best not to rush out the DD posts, so consider the chain broken!

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First up, check out the newly revealed, awesome Gamescom 2015 Trailer! You can watch it right here!

Did you hear that new music track?! Simply amazing, right?! The Snow Biome, as well as the Broodmother in its new home in one of the Boss Arenas, made an appearance in the trailer!

Game Updates v191 and v192

Hey guys! The Survival of the Fittest debut tournament event is over! I watched the first hour of it and it was really great!

The Survival of the Fittest game mode will be arriving later on this month, so we'll definitely be looking out for that!

I actually didn't mean to miss the post for the v191 update, especially since it was quite a large update, but since v192 has actually already been released, I thought it'd be great to merge them together into one Game Updates post!

Dino Dossier - Dodo

Hey guys! I'm sure all of you know this little bird! Dodos are a common sight on the beaches of the island, and are easy pickings for survivors and other predators alike!

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Basic Information

Common Name: Dodo

Species: Raphus replicare

Time: Late Holocene

Diet: Herbivore

Temperament: Oblivious