What an intriguing discovery survivors, can you guess what creature it is?


Here is our special Aberration edition question and answer session with Lead Designer, Lead Programmer, Co-Creative Director of ARK: Survival Evolved, and Co-Founder of Studio Wildcard: Jeremy "Drake" Stieglitz!

Survivor Eschmidty505 asks, "Will Aberration have an Ascension boss like the island?"

Yes, along with an increased Ascension level and a narrative-advancing ending!

Survivor NeckRipper asks, "Will dlc content carrier over to the different arks island, center and rag? Like zipline, ice picks ect…"

Yes, it will, and all of the items are being designed to be useful on more than just Aberration.

Survivor danleveille asks, "How will taming work in Aberration? Will there be any major changes to the taming mechanic or will it remain roughly similar? Will there be Kibble? Asking for a friend."

For your “friendâ€, I can say that while most creatures will be similar in core mechanics to The Island creatures, there are a few that are rather batsh$t crazy to tame. One even involves xenomorphic impregnation and chestbursting.

Survivor xViiVD asks, "I have heard from multiple sources that there will be no fliers on this map. Will you restrict any form of transferring fliers or will tribes be allowed to move pteras and wyverns over to Aberration from the island?"

By default and on Official Servers there will not be any rideable fliers transferrable onto the map, in order to encourage new forms of traversal. This will be a server option of course.

Survivor OnePotatoChip asks, "Does this map have more of a PvE focus or at least more PvE oriented content?"

In my view Aberration is the most PvE oriented ARK yet, with more story development than ever before, and more unique non-natural mythos “landmarks†to find and explore.

Survivor WeebTrash asks, "I heard that because of how Aberration's map is designed, gamma won't work on it to make it lighter, is this true? If so, is there gonna be a server option for unofficials to enable gamma working on that map?"

Not sure where you heard that, no plans to change the current gamma functionality.

Survivor RaifuForLaifu asks, "What are "Element Chambers"?"

They are zones of intense radiation where it is possible to collect Element Ore, as well as encounter certain hideous, aggressive creatures.

Survivor HighFlyer15 asks, "Unlike Scorched Earth, where we saw a whole lot of creatures from the Island, can we expect only to see new creatures on Aberration?"

Aberration will include various biome-appropriate creatures from The Island, similar to Scorched Earth.

Survivor Wolf Angelus asks, "What has persuaded you guys to go the sci-fi approach? You could have picked many different routes, but what was the logical thought for this choice, and the incorporation of radiation, and other such things that are "space-themed"?"

Specifically in this case, Aberration was chosen in order to develop the next story arc of… ARK!

Survivor Blackwolfe asks, "Will the cliff platforms be like the tree platforms in the way that they can only be placed in specific spots or will you be able to place them anywhere? Will you be able to snap things on cliff platforms?"

You can build the cliff platforms onto ANY surface that has sufficient attachment area, not only at pre-determined locations.

Survivor PuffyPony asks, "A big part of Aberration is the idea that a malfunctioning ARK led to mutations in its population. Are we getting/can we get lore into what developed into what? Like the Lantern Pug appears to be a mutated Angler, the Rock Drake could be a Megalania, the crazy Mysterious Mysteries #1 a Thylacoleo... I'd love to get some of the background on that, since it'd tie the DLC into the base game nicely."

Yes, there will be some indications along those lines. What developed into the Nameless?

Survivor alcarazr asks, "Will we be able to directly harvest Element in Aberration, either as a resource (with a new tool, such as a special pick) or by killing certain creatures?"

Yes.

Survivor Deaner asks, "Will Aberration have a new building tier just like Scorched Earth got the adobe building tier?"

It won’t have a completely unique tileset, but will have a lot of new utility structures.

Survivor lysergicsid asks, "It was mentioned that the Ark in Aberration has an unstable atmosphere, leaks, etc. so how does that tie into the gameplay, if at all? Like are there some areas where you can suffocate outside of water? If so, will there be any masks or tools that can counteract this?"

Yes there are areas with Low or No Oxygen, and of course the incredibly harsh surface radiation, along with various other environmental hazards. Yeah, there’s a new Hazard Suit designed to aid in counter-acting SOME of these conditions.

Survivor TalSet asks, "This world is supposed to be hostile with mutants correct? Is it going to be one of those situations where its very difficult to start and you constantly die as you spawn?"

We’re trying to make the initial difficulty ramp more forgiving on this ARK, for example the giant “Fertile Chamber†is actually pretty chill, and things get more difficult the deeper you go...

Survivor DauntedVenus asks, "Well, the question most of the community will ask is... will there be legacy servers for this DLC?"

Of course!

Survivor DiloFodder asks, "Will you be able to fire weapons from the back of the rock wyvern? I think it would be equal parts amazing and terrifying to have a firing platform for a sniper that functions as a glider and can utilize a basic active camouflage and would be awesome to use for guerrilla style warfare."

Yes.

Survivor Ashtray asks, "Will the cave climbing picks be able to be used freely on any cliff/cave or only on certain areas?"

Freely on essentially any surface :)

Survivor Colonel Siberia asks, "How useful a role will regular land animals with no climbing dynamics be in moving about? Will we be able to go from one biome to the next without needing to switch to a more mobile creature like the showcased rock drake? Or will there be geographical limitations that necessitate adding all-terrain creatures to our arsenals and adapting to the topography?"

Most of Aberrations creatures have capabilities to move through the complex environment, and there are also new structures to aid in both primitive and high-tech dino mobility...

Survivor Colonel Siberia asks, "How will earthquakes change the way players build their bases and raise their dinos? Are the earthquakes capable of damaging structures and, if so, are there any ways we can mitigate these effects?"

They are capable of damaging structures, but they’re only intense in certain areas of certain biomes. Building permanent bases there is not advised!

Survivor Colonel Siberia asks, "How will radiation affect the way players explore and how will hazard suits work with the system? Will there be any strange creatures that survive, and possibly even thrive, in radiation zones? Is the radiation solely on the surface, or will we encounter some underground, as well?"

Yes, a few creature types benefit from radiation. It’s not solely on the surface, but is most intense there. The Hazard Suit mitigates radiation and other extreme environmental dangers, but its durability is decreased over time when under such effects.

Survivors across ALL Platforms will be receiving a special Evolution Event++ perk this weekend! It's already live now and will remain active until Monday the 25th at 12PM EST. All Official Servers will be undergoing this evolutionary change which includes:

2x Harvesting Rate
2x Taming Rate
2x EXP Rate
2x Maturing
2x Hatching
2x Gestation
2x Faster Mating Interval Rates

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To read the rest of the Community Crunch this week, check out our announcement post on survivetheark![survivetheark.com]

Keep on surviving!