ARK: Survival Evolved

ARK: Survival Evolved is an adventure game that gives you prehistoric fun. The game has many animals that we see today, but also brings in the element of history, dinosaurs! The game gives the option of almost full character customization, as the height, weight, skin color, hair color are customizable, as well as other features. Another cool feature that this game brings in is that all characters start off with short hair, a buzzcut, and as the game progresses the characters’ hair grows and needs to be cut. This is a really cool feature because it gives the game a more realistic character development. The game overall has a more realistic feel to it, as there are water effects and even true physics such as gravity when chopping down a tree.

Photo of the game from Tiffanie Poust

Throughout the game there are many things to do, such as fishing, hunting, or even something as simple as getting wood or digging into a boulder for stone, but the art style makes the game beautiful while doing it. The game upon startup has a bright sun, clouds in the sky, and even reflections of the light hitting the top of the water. The game does include render distance which adds to the realism of the game. Since the game has the sun there are also shadows on anything including the buildings you can make, trees, boulders, and even players in the game. The game also includes a daylight cycle, which helps add to the realism in the game, even including moonlight. This even includes light reflections off of items in the game such as a simple plant. Another feature is the detail the game has for specific animals, such as dodos in the game having feathers as well as a pteranodon having rough skin.

The color palette for the game is very similar to how the world is viewed. The colors are very natural and there are very few colors that do not exactly match the other colors in the game, such as vibrant dyes. The colors are neutral and natural, such as stone having a gray color, sand being the tan color, and trees and other plants are shades of green.