- Games
- ARK: Survival Evolved
ARK: Survival Evolved
Build a shared settlement, tame dinosaurs and explore an island where hunger and predators threaten your tribe.
Online co-op for up to 70 players and split-screen co-op for 2 players, with crossplay.
- 70 online
- 2 split-screen
- Crossplay
Where to buy
Playing together
- Online co-op70 players
- Local co-op2 playersSplit screen
- YesPC, XboxFriends on different platforms, such as PC and PlayStation, can play together.
- Not confirmedA friend can join or leave while you are already playing, without starting over.
- Not confirmedFriends play free with a Friend's Pass or similar.
- Steam DeckVerifiedValve's own rating
About the game
You start on an island without tools or shelter. Gather stone, wood and food, then turn them into weapons, clothing and a home. Dinosaurs can kill you, but you can also capture, feed and tame them. Your animals carry supplies, gather materials and help you reach places that would be dangerous on foot.
Friends join a tribe and share buildings, animals and supplies. One person can expand the base while others hunt or prepare for a longer trip. Gathering and waiting for animals leaves time to talk, while an unexpected predator can put hours of work at risk.
The official PC and console servers closed in 2023. Private servers and hosted sessions remain available. Two can play locally on supported versions. Xbox crossplay uses the Microsoft Store Windows version. Steam players need a separate compatible PC server.
How it feels
Kind of game
One lasting world your group settles. You gather, build and push into dangerous places together.
- Now and then
- Laughter and chaos
- Fear
- Calm and coziness
- Story
- Working in sync
- Sessions
- Ongoing world
Rated on our own feel scale. 4 sources back these ratings.
Screenshots
From the Steam store page. Open one to see it full size.
If you liked ARK: Survival Evolved
You will probably enjoy these too. Each one says why.
Conan Exiles Enhanced
Why it scores 89%
What they share
- Kind of game
- Shared survival world
- About
- Wilderness survival
- Core to both
- Exploring, Building and creating, Unlocks and progress
- Notable in both
- Time to hang out, Tension and danger, Planning ahead, Getting better, Fighting
- Sessions
- Ongoing world
- Co-op
- Online co-op
- Online
Both give your group a hard world to survive in together. Both are about surviving in the wild. Both are about exploring places you have not seen.
No big difference from ARK: Survival Evolved.
Once Human
Why it scores 89%
What they share
- Kind of game
- Shared survival world
- About
- Wilderness survival
- Core to both
- Exploring, Building and creating, Unlocks and progress
- Notable in both
- Time to hang out, Tension and danger, Planning ahead, Fighting
- Sessions
- Ongoing world
- Co-op
- Online co-op
- Online
- Crossplay
Both give your group a hard world to survive in together. Both let you build things together. Both are about surviving in the wild.
No big difference from ARK: Survival Evolved.
Smalland: Survive the Wilds
Why it scores 87%
What they share
- Kind of game
- Shared survival world
- About
- Wilderness survival
- Core to both
- Exploring, Building and creating, Unlocks and progress
- Notable in both
- Time to hang out, Tension and danger, Planning ahead, Fighting
- Sessions
- Ongoing world
- Co-op
- Online co-op
- 10 online
- Crossplay
Both give your group a hard world to survive in together. Both are about surviving in the wild. Both are about exploring places you have not seen.
No big difference from ARK: Survival Evolved.
All co-op facts
Last checked 24 October 2026. The small numbers link to the page that states each fact.
Co-op
- Fewest players online
- Not confirmed
- Separate-device co-op
- Not confirmed
- Most players on separate devices
- Not confirmed
- Free base co-op
- No
The checked computer full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.
- 156714
- Confirmed free setups
- Does not apply
- Friends can join mid-game
- Not confirmed
- Only one of you needs to buy it
- Not confirmed
- Voice chat by distance
- Not confirmed
Platforms
Store IDs
- Wikidata item
- Not confirmed
Sources
14 pages
store.steampowered.comStore page, read 24 October 2026
Backs Online co-op, Kind of game, Sessions, About, Building and creating, Story, Unlocks and progress, Planning ahead, Genres, Free base co-op.
- Online co-op: Tribes share tames, home spawn points and access to a shared village.
- Kind of game: The tribe gathers, builds and protects a settlement in a persistent world.
- Sessions: Buildings, tames and the sleeping character remain in the world between sessions.
- About: The Evolved description combines food and weather survival, taming dinosaurs and other primeval creatures, and advanced technology.
- Building and creating: Modular construction includes shelters, pipes, generators and defenses.
- Story: Explorer Notes reveal the island mystery. This is background to the shared survival loop.
- Unlocks and progress: Survivors and tames gain levels. Engrams retain learned crafting knowledge after death.
- Planning ahead: Preparation includes supplies, defenses, creature breeding and choosing equipment for hostile regions.
- Genres: The maker describes survival through hunting, resource gathering and crafting equipment and shelters.
- Free base co-op: The checked computer full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.
store.steampowered.comStore data, read 24 October 2026
Backs Steam app ID, Platforms, Release status.
- Steam app ID: Steam identifies ARK: Survival Evolved as app 346110.
- Platforms: Backs Windows and macOS only. The current response does not list Linux.
- Release status: The product is released. The old Early Access user tag does not set its current status.
store.steampowered.comStore data, read 24 October 2026
Backs Steam Deck.
- Steam Deck: Valve rates the game Verified on Steam Deck.
survivetheark.comOfficial news, read 24 October 2026
Backs Online co-op, Most players online, Local co-op, Split or shared screen, Crossplay, Crossplay between.
- Online co-op: The December 19, 2017 announcement describes player-hosted dedicated and non-dedicated cooperative sessions.
- Most players online: The maker explicitly implements hosting a 70-player dedicated server in the Microsoft Store Windows 10 build, alongside PvE and player-hosted dedicated sessions. This is dedicated-host scope, not the smaller non-dedicated group. Hosting runs the game and can be graphically intensive.
- Local co-op: The Microsoft Store Windows version supports split-screen in single-player and non-dedicated sessions. This does not establish Steam split-screen.
- Split or shared screen: Explicitly names split-screen.
- Crossplay: Names Xbox One and Microsoft Store Windows 10 players sharing sessions.
- Crossplay between: Windows means the Microsoft Store build. Steam and Epic PC builds do not belong to this Xbox pool.
xbox.comStore page, read 24 October 2026
Backs Local co-op, Most players on one screen, Split or shared screen, Most players online, Crossplay, Crossplay between, Platforms, Free base co-op.
- Local co-op: Lists local co-op for two players.
- Most players on one screen: Lists local co-op for two.
- Split or shared screen: Lists shared or split screen. The maker identifies the format as split-screen.
- Most players online: Lists online multiplayer for 70 and persistent 70-player worlds. Its four-player co-op entry describes the smaller hosted mode. The maker confirms 70-player dedicated hosting.
- Crossplay: Lists cross-platform co-op and Xbox cross-generation multiplayer.
- Crossplay between: Adds Xbox Series X|S to the Xbox family. The named Windows pairing comes from the maker announcement.
- Platforms: Lists Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, with Series optimization.
- Free base co-op: The checked Xbox full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.
store.playstation.comStore page, read 24 October 2026
Backs Platforms, Most players on one screen, Local co-op, Free base co-op.
- Platforms: The PS4 base game explicitly states it is playable on PS5. PS5 access uses backward compatibility, not a separate edition.
- Most players on one screen: Lists one or two players, independently agreeing with Xbox local two.
- Local co-op: Lists local two-player support alongside online play.
- Free base co-op: The checked PlayStation full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.
nintendo.comStore page, read 24 October 2026
Backs Platforms, Most players online, Free base co-op.
- Platforms: The released Switch product has game-specific Switch 2 compatibility marked supported, with behavior consistent with Switch. This is the Switch game running through compatibility.
- Most players online: Switch online supports 64. The higher 70-player dedicated cap is used.
- Free base co-op: The checked Nintendo full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.
store.steampowered.comOfficial news, read 24 October 2026
Backs Release status, Release date, Genres.
- Release status: The August 29, 2017 maker post announces the transition to the full digital and retail release.
- Release date: Maker launch date is August 29, 2017. This overrides the Steam product date of August 27.
- Genres: The maker calls the game an open-world survival game.
gamespot.comPress, read 24 October 2026
Backs Fear, Tension and danger, Calm and coziness, Working in sync, Fighting, Getting better.
- Fear: Describes spooky nights and sudden predators. Fear stays below sustained horror.
- Tension and danger: Danger and lost equipment regularly interrupt survival work.
- Calm and coziness: Shelter, a fire and settled crafting provide pauses between attacks.
- Working in sync: The tribal structure encourages help without requiring constant synchronized action.
- Fighting: Hunting and defending against creatures recur alongside gathering and building.
- Getting better: Early survival is unforgiving, with equipment and creature systems to learn.
pcgamer.comPress, read 24 October 2026
Backs Exploring, Time to hang out.
- Exploring: PC Gamer review dated September 7, 2017 describes self-directed travel across a large island and flying mounts.
- Time to hang out: Long resource-gathering and taming stretches leave room for conversation. Danger prevents treating normal play as consistently relaxed.
gameinformer.comPress, read 24 October 2026
Backs Laughter and chaos.
- Laughter and chaos: Game Informer preview dated October 13, 2015 describes embarrassing deaths and absurd survival details. These are occasional jokes around survival.
store.steampowered.comOfficial news, read 24 October 2026
Backs Online co-op.
- Online co-op: The 2023 roadmap explicitly retains non-dedicated, player-dedicated and unofficial play after the official-network closure. It also says Evolved and Ascended cannot play together.
survivetheark.comOfficial news, read 24 October 2026
Backs Online co-op.
- Online co-op: The September 2023 notice closes the official network on September 30 and provides saves so players can continue on their own servers. This is not a shutdown of private multiplayer.
store.epicgames.comStore page, read 24 October 2026
Backs Free base co-op.
- Free base co-op: The checked computer full-base edition has a paid base-game access model. Demos, trials, guest passes, platform sharing and temporary grants do not establish ongoing free base co-op.