GAMING: ARK Survival Evolved, a short history, Maps and more..

ARK: Survival Evolved is a popular action-adventure survival game developed by Studio Wildcard and released in 2017.

The game takes place on a mysterious island filled with dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures, where players must gather resources, craft tools, and build shelters to survive.

The development of ARK: Survival Evolved began in 2014, with Studio Wildcard originally planning to release the game as an early access title on Steam. The game's early access release was met with a great deal of hype and anticipation, and it quickly gained a dedicated following of players.

Over the next few years, Studio Wildcard continued to update and expand the game, adding new creatures, features, and gameplay mechanics. In 2017, the game was officially released for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.

Since its release, ARK: Survival Evolved has become one of the most popular survival games on the market, with a large and dedicated player base.

The game has also spawned several spin-off titles, including ARK: Survival of the Fittest and ARK Park, as well as a popular modding community.

In addition to its success as a game, ARK: Survival Evolved has also been the subject of controversy due to its use of microtransactions, as well as allegations of copyright infringement and legal disputes between Studio Wildcard and other game developers.

Despite these controversies, the game continues to be popular among players and has received numerous updates and expansions over the years.

Each map has its own unique biomes, landscapes, creatures, and challenges. The maps currently available in the game are:

1. The Island: The Island is the original map in ARK: Survival Evolved, and features a variety of different biomes, including forests, mountains, and beaches. It also includes several boss fights that can be unlocked by completing various objectives.

2. Scorched Earth: Scorched Earth is a desert-themed map that features harsh terrain, extreme temperatures, and a variety of new creatures, including Wyverns, Rock Elementals, and Deathworms.

3. Aberration: Aberration is a map set in an underground biome, featuring an irradiated environment filled with bioluminescent creatures, and unique resources such as organic polymer and radioactive materials.

4. Extinction: Extinction is set on a ravaged Earth, featuring a futuristic setting filled with corrupted creatures, robots, and a massive biomechanical titan.

5. The Center, an Ark divided by a large ocean with a large floating island and underground tunnel network, free DLC. another one of my favourites.

6. Ragnarok: Ragnarok is a fan-made map featuring a combination of different biomes, including forests, mountains, and snowy tundras. It also includes several unique features, such as a massive castle and a network of underground caves.

7. Valguero: Valguero is another fan-made map, featuring a variety of biomes, including forests, deserts, and snow-capped mountains. It also includes a new boss fight and several new creatures, such as Deinonychus and Stegosaurus.

8. Crystal Isles: Crystal Isles is a map set in a mystical fantasy world, featuring floating islands, crystal caves, and a variety of new creatures, such as the Crystal Wyvern and the Giant Bee.

9. Lost Island is a large Ark filled with ruins and modelled after Tamriel, my favourite map, free DLC.

10. Fjordur is an Ark separated by 4 different realms, great map one of my favourites, free DLC.

In addition to official maps, there are also numerous user-created maps available with the latest official DLC "Fjordur" (prior to the ARK2 launch, when ever that might be! as of 02/2023) there are many more mods and maps available through the Steam Workshop, allowing players to explore even more unique and creative environments, however some are better than others!

And I love it :-) Gaz