Studio Wildcard has released a massive update for ARK: Survival Ascended as a free DLC titled A RK: Ragnarok Ascended, which significantly expands the map and marks the return of the deadly Ice Wyvern. Dropped in early access as a remastered version of the hit dinosaur survival game ARK: Survival Evolved, ARK: Survival Ascended has received a steady stream of content updates since its October 2023 release. The game was transitioned to the latest version of Unreal Engine 5 via a technical patch in March 2025 to improve performance and remedy engine-related issues.
Following the transition to UE5, the Ragnarok update was the second item on Studio Wildcard's content roadmap for ARK: Survival Ascended. The DLC was originally intended to release in April but was delayed until June to allow for further testing and the implementation of critical bug fixes. According to the roadmap, a new premium map is also intended to be released in June, but has yet to be revealed.
12 Best Dinosaurs To Tame in Ark: Survival Evolved
Ark: Survival Evolved lets players tame dinosaurs, but which ones should be prioritized?
The Ragnarok update for ARK: Survival Ascended went live on June 20, adding four new unique biomes, a powerful Bison companion, and the return of the legendary Ice Wyvern. The new biomes are broken up into separate isles: the sweeping plateaus of the Scotland Expansion, the forested plains of the Alpines, the massive canopies of the Redwoods Expansion, and the arid sands of the Desert Expansion. Offering a variety of harvestable resources, opportunities for new ARK: Survival Ascended base structures, and creatures to discover, the four distinct isles make up an expansive 144 square kilometers of explorable content.
The Ragnarok Update for ARK: Survival Ascended Is Now Available
The Ragnarok update dropped alongside the Lost Colony Expansion Pass for ARK: Survival Ascended. The Expansion Pass grants exclusive access to a number of bonuses, including tameable Drakelings, the Veilwyn companion, a new player skill tree, the Template Hammer, the TEK Bunker, and DarkTek Cosmetics. As the game's first story expansion, the cutscenes for Lost Colony were animated by MAPPA, the animation studio behind Attack on Titan and Jujutsu Kaisen. Lost Colony is scheduled to arrive in December 2025.
Studio Wildcard is still working to win over longtime fans of the original ARK: Survival Evolved after the problematic launch of ARK: Survival Ascended after a number of delays. The game is currently sitting at a "Mixed" rating of 59% on Steam with over 70,000 reviews. With the recent transition to UE5 and the new Ragnarok update transitioning familiar content into ARK: Survival Ascended from its predecessor, hopefully, Studio Wildcard is able to turn player opinions around.
OpenCritic Reviews
- Released
- October 26, 2023
- ESRB
- T For Teen Due To Blood, Crude Humor, Game Experience May Change During Online Play, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Studio Wildcard
- Publisher(s)
- Studio Wildcard
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Genre(s)
- Survival, Open-World
