ARK Ultimate Survivor Edition devs on packing the whole game into a Switch port

We spoke with Grove Street Games producer Jordan Kleeman at PAX West 2022 about bringing everything in ARK to the Nintendo Switch.

TJ Denzer

September 12, 2022 6:10 PM

ARK: Survival Evolved has been around for quite a few years now on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation consoles and amassed quite a bit of expansions and added content as part of the fun. Original developer Studio Wildcard is even prepping the next iteration with ARK 2. That said, there’s still plenty of fun to be had in the original and even Switch players will be able to enjoy it soon with ARK: Ultimate Survivor Edition. We recently spoke with the Switch port developers at Grove Street Games about what it’s been like to pack such a massive game and its expansions into the Switch and get it to run well.

It's been no easy task, according to Grove Street producer Jordan Kleeman. Not only is ARK: Ultimate Survivor Edition set to bring Switch 1:1 in content and features with Xbox and PlayStation builds, but it will feature new content as well. The new Scorched Earth Ascension content will be available to Switch players along with everything else that came before, and the developers have worked hard to up the resolution and make it run at a smooth 30fps in both Docked and Handheld Modes.

According to Kleeman, this was a big opportunity for Grove and Studio Wildcard to tie up most of the loose ends in ARK: Survival Evolved. It was a chance to tie a bow on the current game and also give a lot of players what they’ve been asking for across years of play. As such, the Ultimate Survivor Edition is meant to be the most complete and comprehensive version of ARK. For those who savor a variety of play, Grove is also bringing PVP, PVE, and Private servers to the game (you can rent a server to use for your own purposes, even on Switch).

ARK: Ultimate Survivor Edition is set to arrive on Nintendo Switch on October 25, 2022. It’s available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S as well. Want more videos like this? Be sure to check out our YouTube channels at Shacknews and GamerHubTV for the latest interviews, reviews, gameplay, unboxing, and more on the latest video games, technology, and toys.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.

Filed Under