With the future ofArk: Survival AscendedandArk 2seemingly unpredictable, the arguments for and against the upgrade staying around have begun. For all its trouble,Ascendedhas overall been a successful game. It has drawn in massive profits for Studio Wildcard and publisher Snail Games. It has also paved the way for future parts of the franchise, like creature packs and community-created add-ons likequality premiumArkmods.
Meanwhile,Ark 2seems like a game hanging in the balance. Numerous delays have pushed the game back to a supposed release in late 2024, but with that timeframe closing and no update given, it is unlikely to be this year. However,the possibility does exist that the highly anticipated sequel will be released sooner rather than later.
10Ascended Still Has More Content Planned
Reason For Ascended
The main reason to keepAscendedgoing, at least until the sequel is ready, is the content planned. The upgrade is receiving theExtinctionDLC later in December 2024 and has plans for at least one more DLC in early 2025. At this rate, it wouldn’t hurt forAscendedto continue receiving upgradedEvolvedcontent as long as it doesn’t further delayArk 2.
Is Ark: Survival Ascended’s Success Helping Or Hurting Ark 2?
While Ark: Survival Ascended has been massively successful since its rocky 2023 launch, could it actually be hurting the future of the franchise?
Along with DLCs,Ascendedhas also capitalized on selling creature packs andBob’s Tall Tales. More content for the game in this regard not only raises the bar but also generates profit. However,this method should only be used in the eventArk 2is still the planand isn’t outright canceled by Studio Wildcard.
9Ascended’s Lackluster PvP Experience
Reason Against Ascended
One of the largest issues inAscendedhas been its PvP. Part of this is the game’s poor optimization, but most has to do withthe lack of balance and pay-to-win features. The former is rightfully a tricky thing to manage in a game like this, but with a large part of the player base that desires to play PvP, it’s something Studio Wildcard needed to figure out and still hasn’t.
Ark 2could be the chance the franchise needs to get its PvP back on track.
The other aspect has been pay-to-win features like the Pyromane and Dreadmare. These powerful creatures are capable of easily dominating servers and are excluded from those who can’t or don’t want to purchase them. This ended up coming back around to the point wherethe Pyromane was then nerfed so hard it felt useless. In this regard,Ark 2could be the chance the franchise needs to get its PvP back on track.
8Ascended’s Potential Path Forward
IfArk 2is abandoned forAscended, then the title has a lot more room for growth. As mentioned previously, it can receive all ofEvolved’s content rather than the cutoff point it originally had.This would solve many of the issues withEvolved’s dated systemsbut would have to be finely tuned.
Second,Ascendedwill be at a point where anything planned forArk 2, from a story standpoint, could transfer over. The content itself may be more limited than what the studio desired at first, but the benefits of remaking it forAscendedcould greatly outweigh the risk of pushing forward withArk 2. This path is by no means the “easy” option, but would likely be the “safer” for the franchise and studio.
7Ark 2 Can Have Better Collaborations
Though a smaller reason,Arkas a franchise seems to be taking inspiration from other popular games and starting to collaborate with other media franchises. The first of these was withMighty Morphin Power Rangers, andwhile visually the custom skins were excellent, the lackluster collaboration felt like a waste of money. There is a second one planned, but there is nothing to indicate it will be any big step up from its predecessor.
Ark 2,with all its innovations, could be the opening the studio needs to push the boundaries with collaborations. Something like thePower Rangerspack could go from a simple cosmetic to something with unique mechanics. Proper balance would be crucial here, and some server limitations may exist, but there are ways to make this work that benefit all sides.
6Ascended Can Help Prevent A Split Playerbase
A glaring issue ifArk 2does release is the two games competing for players.The best-case scenario isArk 2is nearly flawlessand only a small portion of the community prefersAscended. However, given Studio Wildcard’s track record, the more likely outcome is a large portion like the sequel, and an equal or larger portion staying withAscendedor evenEvolved.
A split player base like this would be the death of both games.Ascendedwould likely be left without any new content, leaving mods to fill the gap, but even that would be a bandage solution. Meanwhile,Ark 2would need a steady income to make content for the future, along with good base sales at launch. IfArk 2seems more of a gamble now than it did when first announced, it may be better to just stick withAscended.
5Ascended Still Has Hordes Of Performance Issues
Arguably the biggest issue withAscendedis its poor optimization and performanceon every platform. Consoles are limited, which gives them a better baseline, but they still feel poor when compared to a high-end PC. Most standard PCs can barely run the game, and those that can with thebest settings for performance inAscendedhave to sacrifice graphical quality for it.
This relies on the hope thatArk 2avoids these issues. In the case it does, then there are no issues and the franchise moves on like it always planned to. However, ifArk 2releases as poorly optimized asAscended, or somehow worse, thenthe franchise may truly be on its last legs.
4Ascended Has A Stable Gameplay Loop
Even with its issues, the core gameplay ofAscendedis solid. Enough so thatit could easily survive for a few more years, which would put it in a place where the franchise could wrap up nicely. There is no denyingArk 2would enhance the franchise, but that doesn’t mean anything inAscendedis flawed.
Anything that can be comfortably worked into the engine without breaking the game would be a welcome refresh.
However, this does not mean thatAscendedcan’t see some upgrades. Anything that can be comfortably worked into the engine without breaking the game would be a welcome refresh. This also helps prevent the total loss of any ideas Studio Wildcard had for the sequel. A good example of this is the reworked crafting systems that have been detailed forArk 2.
3Ark 2 Could Avoid Or Fix Microtransactions
One ofAscended’s biggest issues recently has been microtransactions with creature packs. Though this has become a common practice in gaming, another likely reason for it inAscendedis that all the DLC are free upgrades. Understandably, the studio needs some form of income, butthe way creature packs have been handled is improper and could be removed in the sequel.
The other option is forArk 2to fix microtransactions. This could be done in multiple ways, with the two easiest options being a proper balance of creatures or server limitations. Another option, though unlikely given the freedom of it, would be to only require the host or a certain server member to have the packs purchased. This would only work on non-official servers but is a nice boon to all players while giving non-buyers the chance to try the creatures and convince them to purchase.
2Ascended Can Be Fixed For Cheaper
On the flip side,ifAscended’s performance issues could be fixed, it would be the cheaper option for Studio Wildcard. This also depends on the status ofArk 2and where the sequel is in the development process. If it is as far back as some believe it to be, then this would be a reasonable choice. However, if the game could be released in 2025, this wouldn’t be as advisable.
10 Best Dinosaurs To Tame Early In Ark: Survival Ascended
Taming dinosaurs is the most important component of Ark: Survival Ascended, and a handful of creatures are best suited for the early hours of a save.
IfAscended’s performance issues were resolved, a massive wave of problems would wash away. There would still be hardware limitations, but it opens the door for more players to access it than before. A step like this, even if it is the bare minimum,would bea huge win for the studio and go a long way to restore its supporters' wavering faith.
1Ark 2 And Its Innovations Are Hard To Ignore
The hard problem with staying withAscendedis that nothing major would change from a gameplay perspective.Ark 2is reportedly set to introduce hordes of new systems and mechanicsto change the franchise completely. These include reworked crafting systems, smarter dinosaur AI, and acombat system taking inspiration from third-person soulslike games.
For the most part, changes like these would be impossible to bring toAscended. This would leave the game in a frozen state, which isn’t horrible considering that it is the state it has already had success with. However, everything gets stale at one point, and the innovationsArk 2wanted to introduce were a large part of what built up the hype.
There is no easy choice for the path ahead of this beloved franchise. IfArk 2is as far in development as it is hoped to be, it is better to finish it. This will put Studio Wildcard on a tightrope to walk withAscended, but likely one the developer was always prepared to tackle. On the other hand, ifArk 2has been bogged down with serious issues that have prevented massive progress, it may be smarter to makeArk: Survival Ascendedthe future.
Ark: Survival Ascended
ARK: Survival Ascended is a reimagined version of the 2017 action-adventure survival MMORPG by the developers at Studio Wildcard and Grove Street Games. Built in Unreal Engine 5, players will return to ARK to build tribes, fight and tame dinosaurs, and brave the elements as they battle to survive in a unique sandbox where crafting and resource management is essential.
