Ark: Survival Evolved has been, well, evolving over the course of its life. In the latest DLC to Ark, you’ll find a number of “firsts” for the game, including the first community map, three new creatures (which were also handled by the community), and much more. There are now 150-square kilometers of exploration, “vast mangrove swamps,” and even an uncharted cave system to explore on the Lost Island. Sound interesting? Let’s take a closer look at Ark: Lost Island.
Ark: Lost Island marks first community map and character release
The Lost Island DLC recently launched for Ark and marks a few different firsts for the game, as mentioned above. RaptorClaus will be making a “triumphant” return to drop off holiday gifts filled with “loot, event items, mistletoe, and lumps of coal” for those who didn’t make the nice list. There’s a chance to earn a new Santa and animated Parasur skins as well as new Chibis.
On top of the traditional Ark Christmas events, there’s something else the team has cooked up. This year the community could vote like it’s never done before, where players were able to have a voice in creatures and the map itself. Ark: Lost Island brings three new dinosaurs into the mix, including the Amargasaurus, Dinopithecus, and Sinamacrops. The Lost Island map itself has already been trending in the community, with folks talking about the new 150-square kilometers of exploration available, as well as the unique and uncharted cave system.
This doesn’t mark the end of Ark’s updates, however. The team talked about an update coming in February based around Love Evolved in the form of a Nordic-inspired mod community map dubbed Fjordur. The community vote will be brought back for new creatures with enhancements for this next update, too.
As we mentioned, the Ark: Lost Island DLC is completely free to players who already own the game. It also should be included with the Game Pass version for subscribers, too. Not sure if Game Pass is worth it? We took a deep dive into the service last year and our thoughts are much the same as we head into the holiday season yet again.
9to5Toys’ take
It’s great to see the Ark team keeping the game fresh with new content throughout the year. I also love seeing that they’re getting the community involved, something that most games claim to do but fail to properly execute. The fact that the community had a hand in helping choose the new animals and shape the map shows just how integrated the Ark team is with the community, and since the vote is coming back for the February update, how well gamers took to the idea as well.
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