ARK Survival Ascended. Worth it or Not? Lacking in Appeal.

[JoshTGW]

For one thing, I must say that it is great that ARK, a game that's been around for several years now, is getting a remastered/polished version like many other games made by companies like Square Enix. It's great for newer players as they can just move onto that platform if they really haven't paid for anything beyond the Island map and the older version of the game or are looking to play ARK. However this is where the benefits immediately get outweighed by the downsides as it leaves the current/older parts of the community with a tough situation.

For ARK fans, this is great, but also bad since the package they've announced that includes all the paid DLCs, which hasn't even been released and won't be in full until a decent amount of time into 2024, is just the same game with some polishing, a few mechanical additions namely for water physics, and just some new textures. It might as well be an update to Minecraft where they funny enough provided more additions to the game on a fairly regular basis, as well as new mechanics, and new textures all for free essentially to those who have bought the game. It's basically the same thing, just on different games that share the same general genre of survival and platforms. Too me, this reminds me of the Sonic Colors Remastered release by Sega which honestly lacked in appeal and wasn't worth it in my opinion. Which is more worth it, buying a functional but used XBOX 360 which at most would sell for $20-$25 with the older version of Sonic Colors which at a Gamestop could be as low as $5-$10 or the Remaster that is around $60 which is only just polished, new textures and a few little, almost completely insignificant, additions like cosmetics?

As an ARK player whom has almost 3000 hours put into this game, I'm just gonna end this off by saying that I don't think it is even remotely worth it to buy it especially if you already own all the current paid DLCs as of the making of this thread. If you all want to waste your money on what is essentially the same game and can do so, then by means do so, i won't stop you and as if i could anyway. I just want you to know that while you wait for each DLC to drop, myself and/or anyone who already has all the current paid DLCs can just play on those same exact maps you're waiting to have remastered right now and for anyone that wants the whole game now, the Ultimate Survivor Bundle which includes all the paid DLC maps is available for less than $50 which will eventually go down in price by the time the remastered version and all its versions of those maps comes out in full. Sure there are annoying bugs and issues, but overall they're tolerable and the game is fun and enjoyable to play.

[Lazarus]

No Man's sky did a total overhaul too, but they did it free unlike these greedy devs.

[Zera_Fox]

I'm looking forward to my Carno's not launching themselves off cliffs anymore because they bumped into a tree!
With the new Creature Pathing system, they should bump into trees far less often and hopefully definitely not chuck themselves off cliffs!
I'm also looking forward to some legit baby creatures, not relying on a mod to make that a thing anymore.
Some better Dino and Baby Dino management systems. As a taming/breeder this is a huge deal for me. I'm eager to see what they've got in store.
I've also got friends who play ARK on console and not PC. So I'm really looking forward to being able to play with my Console friends, as well as being able to share some of the beloved mods with them too! I know some of my console pals are excited at the idea to give some mod features a go!
Better snap points and what-not for building!? YES PLEASE! How many times I've tried to put a railing somewhere specific and it keeps snapping THE WRONG WAY.
Several new creatures too! I'm pumped! A new one for each new Canon Map, and then 4 more coming in the new/last Expansion for the "ARK 1 Story"! I wasn't a fan of the Extinction/Genesis DLCs and I'm hoping they learned something from those 3 DLCs that this new last one will be something to really end the story on properly. Perhaps a "bridge" between the ARK 1 and ARK 2 stories. I mean, that would make sense right?
I don't have to take up my shield slot with a chibi anymore!? YES PLEASE! As a preferred melee combatant this is HUGE!
They're also doing many balance passes across the board. Good, lots of stuff is either OP or Under-powered and I'm looking forward to that too!

Plus more they haven't mentioned yet because they don't want to be seen further as "failures" like everyone keeps calling them on their promises and statements.

So there's more to Ascended than pretty graphics, I could care less if the water has a reflection or flows with tide or whatever have-you. But I am excited to see this game with the features they're talking about, and a sneak-peak into the new 3rd person we'll be experiencing in ARK 2 since they're reworking the 3rd person camera too, so I assume it will be the same camera used in ARK 2.

But if the idea of a nicer looking water, plant and creatures is a turn off for you. I guess that's a valid reason to not be excited. *shrug*
But don't discount the rest of it!

[noborinin2]

I myself as of the last bit of info coming out have lost a lot of my self atm why because I to have well over 2000+ hours in this game. I lost interest now for me this is big as I have ADHD and Ark has been able to keep my attention for a long time. It's my go to game but now I can't bring myself to do anything in game but go on feeding runs as I think about all my Dino's being gone in August all the hours of work I put in to build my base gather every thing to capture and tame my 300+ tame's. It is sad to say but it is no longer fun and can no longer keep my attention. So long Ark it was fun while it lasted but I have no will to get the new Ark or Ark2 they now just don't give me anything to look forward too.

[Chowmix]

Originally posted by Zera_Fox:

I'm looking forward to my Carno's not launching themselves off cliffs anymore because they bumped into a tree!
With the new Creature Pathing system, they should bump into trees far less often and hopefully definitely not chuck themselves off cliffs!
I'm also looking forward to some legit baby creatures, not relying on a mod to make that a thing anymore.
Some better Dino and Baby Dino management systems. As a taming/breeder this is a huge deal for me. I'm eager to see what they've got in store.
I've also got friends who play ARK on console and not PC. So I'm really looking forward to being able to play with my Console friends, as well as being able to share some of the beloved mods with them too! I know some of my console pals are excited at the idea to give some mod features a go!
Better snap points and what-not for building!? YES PLEASE! How many times I've tried to put a railing somewhere specific and it keeps snapping THE WRONG WAY.
Several new creatures too! I'm pumped! A new one for each new Canon Map, and then 4 more coming in the new/last Expansion for the "ARK 1 Story"! I wasn't a fan of the Extinction/Genesis DLCs and I'm hoping they learned something from those 3 DLCs that this new last one will be something to really end the story on properly. Perhaps a "bridge" between the ARK 1 and ARK 2 stories. I mean, that would make sense right?
I don't have to take up my shield slot with a chibi anymore!? YES PLEASE! As a preferred melee combatant this is HUGE!
They're also doing many balance passes across the board. Good, lots of stuff is either OP or Under-powered and I'm looking forward to that too!

Plus more they haven't mentioned yet because they don't want to be seen further as "failures" like everyone keeps calling them on their promises and statements.

So there's more to Ascended than pretty graphics, I could care less if the water has a reflection or flows with tide or whatever have-you. But I am excited to see this game with the features they're talking about, and a sneak-peak into the new 3rd person we'll be experiencing in ARK 2 since they're reworking the 3rd person camera too, so I assume it will be the same camera used in ARK 2.

But if the idea of a nicer looking water, plant and creatures is a turn off for you. I guess that's a valid reason to not be excited. *shrug*
But don't discount the rest of it!

Forgive me, I must have missed them demonstrating all of these features, can you link the videos or images showing that these are actual aspects of the repackaged experience? Im sure you wouldnt base things off of what is merely written, given the devs history of not following through with what is written.

[KonaManta]

Lots of ideas about the remake have already been put out there so I'm not going to go into detail about my reasoning, but no, I'm very disappointed in wildcard and will def not be purchasing ASA. Probably not Ark 2 either, because they'll probably just pull the same stunts further down the line.

[Zera_Fox]

Originally posted by Chowmix:

Originally posted by Zera_Fox:

I'm looking forward to my Carno's not launching themselves off cliffs anymore because they bumped into a tree!
With the new Creature Pathing system, they should bump into trees far less often and hopefully definitely not chuck themselves off cliffs!
I'm also looking forward to some legit baby creatures, not relying on a mod to make that a thing anymore.
Some better Dino and Baby Dino management systems. As a taming/breeder this is a huge deal for me. I'm eager to see what they've got in store.
I've also got friends who play ARK on console and not PC. So I'm really looking forward to being able to play with my Console friends, as well as being able to share some of the beloved mods with them too! I know some of my console pals are excited at the idea to give some mod features a go!
Better snap points and what-not for building!? YES PLEASE! How many times I've tried to put a railing somewhere specific and it keeps snapping THE WRONG WAY.
Several new creatures too! I'm pumped! A new one for each new Canon Map, and then 4 more coming in the new/last Expansion for the "ARK 1 Story"! I wasn't a fan of the Extinction/Genesis DLCs and I'm hoping they learned something from those 3 DLCs that this new last one will be something to really end the story on properly. Perhaps a "bridge" between the ARK 1 and ARK 2 stories. I mean, that would make sense right?
I don't have to take up my shield slot with a chibi anymore!? YES PLEASE! As a preferred melee combatant this is HUGE!
They're also doing many balance passes across the board. Good, lots of stuff is either OP or Under-powered and I'm looking forward to that too!

Plus more they haven't mentioned yet because they don't want to be seen further as "failures" like everyone keeps calling them on their promises and statements.

So there's more to Ascended than pretty graphics, I could care less if the water has a reflection or flows with tide or whatever have-you. But I am excited to see this game with the features they're talking about, and a sneak-peak into the new 3rd person we'll be experiencing in ARK 2 since they're reworking the 3rd person camera too, so I assume it will be the same camera used in ARK 2.

But if the idea of a nicer looking water, plant and creatures is a turn off for you. I guess that's a valid reason to not be excited. *shrug*
But don't discount the rest of it!

Forgive me, I must have missed them demonstrating all of these features, can you link the videos or images showing that these are actual aspects of the repackaged experience? Im sure you wouldnt base things off of what is merely written, given the devs history of not following through with what is written.

Have you seen images or videos of better graphics?
No? Well then I guess we're just making that assumption too aren't we?

Or the fact that they're closing any Official Servers, it is after all only said right? They haven't given us any actual proof by shutting them down?
But we're taking that on good faith too?

Devs have a history of not living up to everything they've said, sure. But they don't have a history of living up to nothing they've said either.
But lets continue to only hold onto the bad things as it seems this community is good at it and completely overlook the good things.

WC may not be the best at communication, timing, forthcoming with information (and as we can clearly see attempts to do so wind up in backlash).
But they have always been forward and honest with us.

[JoshTGW]

Originally posted by Zera_Fox:

Originally posted by Chowmix:

Forgive me, I must have missed them demonstrating all of these features, can you link the videos or images showing that these are actual aspects of the repackaged experience? Im sure you wouldnt base things off of what is merely written, given the devs history of not following through with what is written.

Have you seen images or videos of better graphics?
No? Well then I guess we're just making that assumption too aren't we?

Or the fact that they're closing any Official Servers, it is after all only said right? They haven't given us any actual proof by shutting them down?
But we're taking that on good faith too?

Devs have a history of not living up to everything they've said, sure. But they don't have a history of living up to nothing they've said either.
But lets continue to only hold onto the bad things as it seems this community is good at it and completely overlook the good things.

WC may not be the best at communication, timing, forthcoming with information (and as we can clearly see attempts to do so wind up in backlash).
But they have always been forward and honest with us.

Just because it's a new coat of paint with some minor upgrades to some mechanics doesn't mean it isn't the same game. I provided some examples in my original post that were of games that were exactly like this will be. Sure there might be minor additions, but they're just cosmetic in nature. Sonic Colors was especially guilty of this issue, but managed to profit due to the amount of time that passed which was at the minimum a decade, more accurately 12 years.

If they were smart, they would've just allocated these resources towards ARK 2's development and refinement which now worries me that ARK 2 may not be a very well-designed product in the end since this could turn into a scandal that could very well lose WildCard money in the longrun.

Someone on Twitter told me that this would make them more money that would go towards ARK 2.... maybe from a minor influx of new players, but given how long it has been since the original official release, the one on the EPIC Games store, the consoles, and i can't forget to mention the different release dates on each of the DLCs..... and not a lot of time has passed for the community's numbers to shift more in favor towards newer players as opposed to current/veteran players. It stands to reason that ONLY a small percentage of current players will buy Ark Survival Ascended since WildCard more or less has already peaked in terms of player-interest. I doubt a lot of veteran players will be too pleased to play it unless they're willing to waste their money for what is essentially an OVERPRICED SKIN as if it were sold by Blizzard in Overwatchs 1 & 2. People will begin to harshly criticize WildCard for essentially re-releasing the same game. I can assure you this will bring about economic and ethical consequences for the company.

This is completely contrary to Square Enix whom released the Final Fantasy 7 remake. However it's not the same as it's predecessor. The entire thing was changed from the ground up literally remaking, not rebuilding, how it's played, greatly refining the story, introducing a larger amount of new mechanics and modern gameplay which provides the remake with an identity all its own. ARK Survival Ascended literally just looks exactly like ARK Survival Evolved just with a new coat of paint. It's like saying just because i painted this wall, it's not the same wall. Yes it is the same wall, the same one you probably walk passed, bump into, or use for decoration.

Simply put, Ascended has little to no appeal that makes it stand out enough from Evolved. It doesn't and as we've been told about what they're releasing with it, it clearly will not have its own identity other than just a clone with a slight name change and a few other MINOR changes. If i could put the game in the TEK Cloning Chamber and rename it, would that be a different game?

If i played Ascended, sure MAYBE butter-smooth performance, new textures, refined mechanics that have more leeway... yayyyyyyyyyyy, but it'd feel like and would be the same game.

[franck]

Here’s the discution of some player and I’m getting to them

As a player with over 7000 hours of play, I am very disappointed. I’m on a tight budget and I barely decided to go for the Genesis DLC and now this? I’m not going to spend money on an upgrade, and are not likely to buy ARK 2. Been through this game and society, now I can’t afford to keep spending money to play. I guess I’ll play ARK 1 until I can’t and then switch to one of the many other great games out there!

They should at least offer free dlc for the end of life of the games.
I’m going as many player pass my way on ark ascended and wait for ARK2 to be able to have a new game

[White]

It annoys me how instead of doing both ascended and og for a new dlc and adding a new creature their doing it for the new one only. I love the ark look and ark ascended will probably look way better and real, but I dont really like realism in games and lots of people dont either. I say its probably not worth buying again. Overall they are trying to scam you into buying ascended buy adding lots of stuff

[Alucard †]

Originally posted by White:

It annoys me how instead of doing both ascended and og for a new dlc and adding a new creature their doing it for the new one only. I love the ark look and ark ascended will probably look way better and real, but I dont really like realism in games. I say its probably not worth buying again

If you are talking about Rhyniognatha (the new creature) it will be added to og ARK but rest is correct no more content for og ARK after that.

[White]

Originally posted by ⎛ Alucard ⎞ ✟:

Originally posted by White:

It annoys me how instead of doing both ascended and og for a new dlc and adding a new creature their doing it for the new one only. I love the ark look and ark ascended will probably look way better and real, but I dont really like realism in games. I say its probably not worth buying again

If you are talking about Rhyniognatha (the new creature) it will be added to og ARK but rest is correct no more content for og ARK after that.

No the new creature vote adding a new creature to scorched but ONLY in ascended

[Alucard †]

Originally posted by White:

Originally posted by ⎛ Alucard ⎞ ✟:

If you are talking about Rhyniognatha (the new creature) it will be added to og ARK but rest is correct no more content for og ARK after that.

No the new creature vote adding a new creature to scorched but ONLY in ascended

Ah ok.

[Geronimo]

IMHO, lol, (H standing for high-faluting), these remastered offerings are really just fixes and upgrades to the existing vanilla game which, as many are affirming, should be a free obligation to all their customers in the first place.

I purchased the remaster for Skyrim a few years ago and it was basically the same game. Maybe the differences also rely on the capability of individual systems to be fair.

But after wasting my hard earned money on the teeny bios of Genesis, extinction and Aberration, I will not be paying for the possibility that, what I already paid for, 'might' be improved. They already owe me that and it's insulting that they expect me to pay again.

Ark 2, well time will tell if it's just more of the same with Diesel's face. Not enticing! They could've just added that as a preset avatar setting. The same with new creatures or new theater. Same old!

Except for Unreal 5 how is this not just another DLC?

I'm all for new content that offers something extraordinarily different, as in the Ass. Creed Origins and Greek DLCs, but these remastering have historically been very laskluster.

[Alora]

I'll be honest, if they can fix the "can't log directly into another server because too many engrams in heavily modded Ark because of UE4 limits lol. You gotta connect, get DCed, and then reconnect while the client reloads every mod lmao" thing, that by itself would be worth it for me.

[Alora]

Also map size compression. even if they don't hit the 1GB I hear they managed for Switch, if it's ~5-10GB per map, with 11 official maps--110-125 GB for every single map installed ON ITS OWN would be huge.

and if the compression leads to better performance? So be it!