Dino TLC Update!
At the end of last year, we were very excited to share with you the early progress of our Dino TLC update! We know it's something you guys have been looking forward to for a long time, so here we are with another update!
The plan is for the Dino TLC pass to role out in multiple phases. Throughout the next few months, some creatures will receive visual changes, as well as functional/gameplay changes. We are targetting the release of Phase 1 to take place during the week of February the 18th. In addition to Dino TLC Phase 1, we will also be rolling out our turret limit to all Official Servers.
Today, we'd like to share some more screenshots and provide some insight into what we're planning for Phase 1 of the TLC pass! We've been reading all your feedback and suggestions regarding the creatures; our artists and gameplay team have found it to be beneficial in the decision-making process. Something to keep in mind is that not all creatures will receive a visual update, but we will cover ones we feel (with your feedback) need it. Sometimes there may be function gameplay changes which weaken certain aspects of creatures; however, if we take anything away, we always plan to add to it through another dimension.
Please remember that this is still work-in-progress (especially the fur!) and therefore will be subject to change before final release, which includes both visual redesigns, as well as gameplay changes. Anywho, without further ado!
The Direbear
We believe the Direbear is in relatively secure place at the moment. Though, we're still planning on making a few changes to it!
When riding a Direbear, players will be immune to bees. They won't be able to knock you off your bear, and they will target focus the bear instead of the player.
In addition to this change, the bear will also be able to harvest honey from wild beehives without attracting bees or hurting the hive. Plus the amount of honey it receives will be 2x the standard amount.
The Procoptodon
Right now, if you're using The Procoptopdon, it's primarily for transportation. We don't see it as a highly combative mount, more so a utility creature with its fantastic jump, and ability to carry a second person.
Here's what we're planning:
The Procotopdon will take reduced fall damage; its carry weight will be noticeably increased, and it will gain the new ability to carry baby dinos and small creatures in its pouch.
We figure that puts the creature in a decent spot, and the suggestion of using the pouch to carry babies was excellent, thanks /r/playARK!
Ah, we've forgotten something...
Oh yeah! We're going to give it a kick! It'll be a pretty tough, and even be able to knock back some significantly large creatures!
The Gigantopithecus A.K.A Bigfoot!
We had quite a few ideas pop into our heads when coming up with some additional abilities for the Bigfoot. Did it need more strength and fighting abilities? What about how well it moves? Could we provide it with some new features? Ultimately, here's what we've settled on:
The Bigfoot will receive an armour-degrading attack; this means when it fights, it'll do more damage to your armour's durability. It is important to note that the armour-degrading attack will not affect the Yeti creatures found in the game.
Its movement needed some work! So we'll be giving it the ability to jump, which is kinda critical, considering it will need to know how to hop on and off all the zip-lines it's going to climb! Yup, that's right. It'll be able to use zip-lines!
In addition to those changes, we'll also be improving it's throwing ability, so it's more accurate (similarly to the Crab) and providing it with the ability to carry (on its shoulder) small creatures and throw them!
The Direwolf!
It's a wolf.. and what are wolves good for? Hunting. Now if you're a wolf, and you're hunting, what exactly are you going to rely on the most? Your nose!
In Phase 1 of the update, we'll be introducing a new ability, a passive buff, as well as changing how it's howl and pack buff currently work.
First of all, the howl will activate the pack buff for a duration of time (we're thinking 5 minutes right now). This means it won't be active all the time, but to compensate, we'll be strengthing the buff to make the wolves stronger. As a little bonus is that when the Alpha Wolf howls, so will all the others! We're also planning for this mechanic play out with wild wolves too.
As for its nose, we're doing two things. We're providing it with a passive buff which allows it to sniff out people or creatures with less than 50% health, and this will be indicated via an icon. Think of it like the hunter's instinct.
Secondly, we'll be giving it a 'Sniff' tertiary ability to indicate nearby explorer notes, as well as detect stealth or buried creatures.
and finally...
The Tyrannosaurus Rex
It's in a pretty strong place at the moment; it's considered one of the top-tier creatures. It is used continuously to fight bosses, as well as often seen in PVP. So we didn't want to give it too many changes to avoid making it overpowered, here's what our plan is:
We're going to improve it's movement/climbing ability so that it doesn't get stuck behind small rocks and can climb up steeper slopes.
We're also planning to change the Roar. When targetting an enemy and using the roar, the enemy will be forced to poop. There will be a cooldown on both the Rex and people who have recently pooped, so you can't pooplock them with 10 Rexes.
That pretty much covers it for Phase 1 of the TLC-pass, let us know what you think, whether we're missing anything glaringly obvious! We're also planning (not definite!) on carrying out more visual changes to the following creatures: Spino, Sarco, Carno, Raptor, Female Deer, Plesio, and Argie. Let us know what you'd like to see improved with those, as well as any other creatures you think may need some love that we're overlooking.
NVIDIA Freestyle: Customize Your ARK’s Appearance In Real-Time
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1263948262
Check out the latest NVIDIA GeForce® Experience™ and #GameReady driver for exciting new ways to customize the look of your ARK with NVIDIA Freestyle! There are 15 available filters, 38 different settings, and many possible combinations, enabling you to create a truly unique look for your gameplay with just a few clicks!
Freestyle game filter and Ansel photo mode features will be available in beta. Just download the latest GeForce Experience app (release 3.12) and Game Ready Driver (release 390) and enable Experimental Features in GeForce Experience settings. Join the beta and be the first to try these new features in GeForce Experience today
Check out this articles for all the latest details and how to use the Freestyle filters on your ARK!
New Freestyle Contest!
We'll also be introducing a new category to our Nvidia Ansel contests for all Freestyle entries! You can submit images or a video (up to 1 minute long) using the new awesome filters for a chance to win 200$ (double our normal Ansel reward). Check out our contest submission thread for all the details!
Evolution Event++
Survivors across ALL Platforms will be receiving a special Evolution Event perk this weekend! It's already live now and will remain active until Monday the 15th of January at 12 PM EST. All Official Servers will be undergoing this evolutionary change which includes:
2x Harvesting Rate
2x Taming Rate
2x EXP Rate
2x Maturing
2x Less Breeding Interval
2x Mating
You can check out our full crunch for all the latest news here!
That's it for this post guys! As always if you’ve got anything to share please get in touch and be sure to follow us on:
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All the best,
Studio Wildcard