What Keeps ARK: Survival Evolved on the Steam Bestseller List for More Than 5 Years?
ARK: Survival Evolved has long been a staple at the top of gaming charts with its unique blend of open-world survival and the prehistoric titans of the past, dinosaurs. Stranded with nothing but a mysterious engram on their wrist, players will have to hunt, gather, build and tame to survive a hostile environment and even more dangerous creatures to find answers to their shrouded origins. These survivors will level up their skills and take on various bosses while walking a thin line with other human inhabitants carefully choosing allies and defending against enemies who want nothing but to eliminate threats, dinosaur or human alike.
The Graphics
The graphics of ARK: Survival Evolved are great for its age and fit each of the different ecosystems well. The details and animations of the dinosaurs bring out these larger-than-life creatures in a way that can mystify and intimidate with sheer awe. With over 200 different types of creatures, discovering and experiencing each one is a fulfilling quest in itself. The feel is truly like being transported in time. The environments are well done and there customization elements are plentiful once accessible.
The Gameplay
The gameplay is brutal at first. Without any resources to start, defenseless beginners will often die from lack of nourishment or being unluckily introduced to a predator while scraping together basic necessities. But with a little persistence and patience, players will be able to construct a makeshift base and finally have a foundation for expansion and exploration. Combat is fun and challenging. There is no more satisfying feeling than commanding a tyrannosaurus to take a big bite out of some helpless herbivore or better yet, an enemy survivor. The storyline is completely player-driven which means you can choose to venture out and solve the mysteries of the world or you can focus completely on your tribe and base and never even challenge any of the bosses that roam further in the shadows.
The Continued Updates
With now 5 DLCs and 4 free-to-play expansion maps, each with their own challenges and features, ARK: Survival Evolved has tons of content waiting to be explored. The latest of which sets players on a futuristic gigantic ship biome filled with new dinosaurs and new discoveries. They will have to intertwine space-age technology with their primitive pals to conquer this new land and bring the long running ARK saga to a conclusion. With all the facets ARK: Survival Evolved has to offer, this is a must-play especially after the eventual sequel, ARK 2 is scheduled to arrive sometime next year.
