While 2017 saw the popular PC, Xbox One and PS4 game leave early access, parent company Wildcard Properties have announced new ambitious projects.
ARK Survival Evolved Mobile is coming to iOS and Android this year via Wardrum Studios, while fans can also expect the popular survival title to arrive on Nintendo Switch too.
With the recent releases of both Fortnite and PUBG on phones, it’s certainly an interesting time for gamers.
Each title has varying support when it comes to bluetooth controllers, crossplay and microtransactions.
So it’s probably a good time to find out what’s coming to ARK Survival Evolved on Mobile too.
Going by the footage recently released by Wildcard for the mobile version, it certainly looks like an ambitious project.
And speaking to the Express Online, we now know exactly what kind of limitations and new gameplay mechanics are coming to ARK Mobile.
Below you can find a new FAQ, providing answers on upcoming microtransactions, controller support and the lack of crossplay with PS4 and Xbox One.
CONTROLLER SUPPORT IS COMING TO ARK MOBILE
Controller support is forthcoming, but it hasn’t been a huge priority since we’ve been very focused on the challenge of making this game feel great with touch controls. We’ve got a lot of experience with this and have millions of happy players with our previous adaptations. We’re going touch only on the beta though, as we need as much useful feedback as possible.
IN-GAME CHAT WILL USE SPEECH RECOGNITION FOR TEXT SUPPORT
We actually have an interesting solution for in-game chat. It’s too resource intensive to support voice chat with so many simultaneous players, so we came up with a neat way to tap into Siri and Google’s Cloud Speech API. You tap a button, and the speech recognition systems convert what you say to text, which is broadcast to your desired chat channel. We also tied in some basic game commands such as the whistles and emotes into this system, though it’s purely optional.
NO CROSSPLAY FOR ARK MOBILE AND PS4, XBOX ONE AND PC
Since gathering rates, gameplay mechanics, and new game functionality differ enough, it would be difficult to include cross platform support. We also had to do a full engine overhaul in order to make the game fit on mobile devices.
BUT THERE WILL CROSSPLAY SUPPORT BETWEEN MOBILE PLATFORMS
We do support full cross platform usage between iOS and Android, including a token entry system that lets you pair an Android device and an iOS device with the same account on a server. That way if a player has an Android phone and iOS tablet, they can play with the same character on both.
MICROTRANSACTIONS WILL BE INCLUDED IN ARK MOBILE
We have staunchly opposed pay-to-win mechanics and gambling mechanics throughout development. In order to support the game development and servers, we are asking the players to contribute in a variety of other ways.
The main system we are going to push will be the purchase of a Primal Pass, a month long pass that gives you access to reserved server spots, zero ads, permanent double XP, and other incentives. It’ll probably be in the $ 3-$ 5 range.
In terms of purchasable items, we’ve consistently aimed for a “pay-to-be-convenienced” approach for players who want to do less grinding or go through the fun of gathering and crafting on their own. So players can buy a premium structure called a Lumber Mill, for example, and it can make a number of wood structures instantly. But it’s a trade off, because they didn’t earn any XP in doing so.
In addition there are purchasable temporary buffs. These buffs do what many ARK players have wanted in the PC version. For instance, the “Leg Day” buff gives you 10x weight capacity, and is perfect for players who need to haul a bunch of gear in a single trip.
Of course, we’ll be working with the community from the very start of the closed beta to work out the kinks and establish balance with transactions. We want to make sure purchases are fun and convenient, but don’t screw up the fun for players who want nothing but the core ARK experience.
