Beneath the frozen wastes of Arat Prime, the true cost of Element becomes impossible to ignore. Figures stalk the city, their wills bent and their bodies reshaped into living weapons. When you set foot in this forgotten city of Arat Prime in December, you'll discover that some things are worse than extinction... and not everything that walks still breathes.
We know many of you look forward to Extra Life every year, and so do we. It’s always been a special time where we go live for 24 hours, celebrate together, and push those donation milestones in a way only the ARK community can. Over the years, you’ve helped raise an incredible amount for kids in the Children’s Miracle Network, and we’re so grateful for how the ARK community has always come together to support the cause.
This year, our team is heads-down finishing Valguero Ascended and Lost Colony, which means we won’t be able to host our usual Extra Life livestream on Game Day. We’re disappointed we can’t share that experience with you this year, but we’re committed to making sure the event is still something to look forward to while continuing to support the kids and families who rely on the Children’s Miracle Network for care.
Starting October 31st thru November 10th, we’ll be rolling out a selection of the community’s favorite dino colors on the official network, along with a sweet twist in place of the traditional boosted donation rates. For the event, you’ll be able to dig into Cake Slices that grant bonuses to:
- Taming
- Breeding
- Imprinting
- EXP
- Harvesting
Here’s the part we’re most excited to share with you: every $30,000 contributed towards the Studio Wildcard Extra Life charity campaign will unlock a Dino TLC pass, breathing new Ascended life into one of ARK’s classic creatures, up to a maximum of 4 creatures (at $120,000) delivered throughout 2026. When you donate, please include the full name of the creature you’d like to see receive some love. Every dollar counts as one vote towards that specific creature, and the community’s combined support will determine which creatures evolve with renewed gameplay and style.
In next week’s crunch, we’ll be opening up the Studio Wildcard Extra Life page to start receiving donations, as well as explaining the donation/reveal schedule and any important information that would be necessary to know in order to vote for a Dino TLC.
Starting after Game Day, we’ll reveal one winner each week throughout November. Before each reveal, donations will continue to be counted, so if your favorite hasn’t been picked yet you’ll still have time to support it. In every Community Crunch during this time, we’ll also share the current Top 5 contenders still in the running, so you’ll have a chance to rally behind your favorite and affect the results.
We may not be streaming this year at Studio Wildcard, but we’re still celebrating Extra Life with you, and this time you hold the power to decide the future of ARK’s OG creatures. Stay posted for more details and let’s make it another amazing year for the kids!
MODSPOLIGHTLINK
Download & play new custom content created by players, including new maps, creatures, items, and game modes, through a dedicated new Mod-browser directly within the game. Enjoy an endless stream of new ARK content as the creativity and talent of the community is fully unleashed for the first time across gaming platforms and stay tuned as we spotlight more Cross-Platform Mods each week!
This video features:
- LudopARK CASINO Freemium by Troyar_ARK (premium)
- CryoFridge Catalogue - Custom Cosmetics by Fernandess
- O_manao - Clothing Cosmetics by Fernandess
- GliderCostumes by TeamMIROKU
- Feral Fauna: Majungasaurus (Update) by Lazuli_Live
- Defense Plus by NN17
- ClaysPachyrhinoEdit by TheClay_art
Now officially swimming the open waters of ARK: Survival Ascended, this spiral-jawed predator is ready to grind its heart away. With a tail built to slap and a bite built to shred, the Helicoprion is officially in the wild! So maybe look twice before you cannonball into the deep end?
If you’re transferring or ascending to another server with an Armadoggo or Veilwyn in Companion Mode, be sure to exit Companion Mode first. Leaving it active may cause issues during the transfer.
Engineers are continuing to work on the fix with high priority and we hope to set it live soon.
Expire servers are temporary servers across the network that will eventually be removed, and you can find them by searching for "Expire" in the session filter.
These servers will be online until 10 am PST / 1 pm EST on September 1st. We're preemptively using our allocation for future maps to host some additional sessions that players can travel onto to farm, tame, and experience the newest content Gameplay. The same transfer restrictions apply in that you are only able to download your character, but you can freely take anything off. This is to help reduce load off some of the other servers, or provide players an option for those who just want to jump onto a new map temporarily.
Please note that these servers will no longer exist after 10 am PST / 1 pm EST on September 1st, so if you intend to use them, remember to transfer your items/creatures/characters off before that date, as nothing will be saved beyond that time period.
We’re hosting a special building competition! Four winning builds will be added as official in-game templates for everyone to use.
This is your chance to leave a mark on ARK — create something iconic, creative, and functional that survivors across Official servers will be able to build and enjoy.
Competition Timeline
- Entries Open: Friday, August 22, 2025
- Entries Close: Wednesday, September 10, 2025
- Discord Voting start: Wednesday, September 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM PT
- Discord Voting end: Wednesday, September 17, 2025 at 5:00 PT
- Finalists Announced in the Crunch and Final Voting starts: Friday, September 19, 2025
- Winners Announced in the Crunch: Friday, September 26, 2025
Prizes
- 2 Community Winner – chosen by popular vote
- 2 Wildcard Winner – hand-picked by the Studio
All four winning builds will be added as official in-game templates. Plus, as an added little bonus, each winner will receive a Lost Colony Expansion Pass!
Submission Guidelines
- Your build must be Official-compatible:
- No overlapping or modded structures.
- Should be built on a flat surface so players can recreate it easily.
- Must be completable/playable.
- Each submission must include a proper template name + in-game description.
- Builders must provide their template code so we can verify it against the rules.
- Must have screenshots of your work
- Content must be your own work.
- Content rules:
- No NSFW, derogatory, discriminatory, or disrespectful content.
- PG-13 only.
How to Enter
Submit your entry as a thread in #asa-build-contest on the Official ARK Discord.
- Your submission must include:
- Your template code
- A brief title and description of your build
- Screenshots of your build
This weekend, the Official Network will be receiving bonus rates! It will be active until Tuesday, September 2.
- PVP/PVE: 2x Harvesting, Taming, and Experience, and Breeding
- Small Tribes: 4.5x Harvesting, Taming, and Experience + 4x Breeding
- ARKpocalypse: 5x Harvesting, Taming and Experience, and Breeding
Fan Art Gallery | Screenshot Gallery | Artist Feedback Form
Creator: Mystic on Ark
Watch this comprehensive guide to learn everything you need to know about mutation breeding in ARK!
YOUTUBE URL
Creator: BEYPlaysGames
Check out BeyPlaysGames' comprehensive guide of his top 10 Creature mods that work on Ragnarok Ascended!
YOUTUBE URL
Spring by @falco_luna
Did I cook? by @SirDripstein
Fan Art by @WolfTek7
My ARK Parasaurolophus by @vulturescale
Pyromane by Markos550
Raptors are not good babysitters, but are quite enthusiastic, Part 2. by @coffeedragonart
Managarmr by lunarsiren
Taking flight in the sunset by sirduckington_dusk
Ocean Eyes by nesvog
Photo Mode by jidait
Photo Mode by godzilla402
Photo Mode by catcatswaggin
Enjoy your weekend!
Studio Wildcard
Twitter: twitter.com/survivetheark
Discord: discord.com/invite/playark
Reddit: reddit.com/r/playark
Instagram: instagram.com/survivetheark
Twitch: twitch.tv/survivetheark
Steam: steamcommunity.com/app/346110
Youtube: youtube.com/survivetheark
Facebook: facebook.com/survivetheark
Threads: threads.net/@survivetheark
Official Wiki: ark.wiki.gg