Complete ARK Survival Ascended DLC roadmap, explored

ARK Survival Ascended is the popular remaster of the original game, ARK Survival Evolved. While the new game introduced players to a plethora of new features, there is more that's set to go live in the game in the coming few days. That said, the developers have finally released more information about the other maps, along with their potential release dates.

So far, ARK Survival Ascended has mostly been a success. Despite delays concerning the launch on consoles, the title managed to amass quite a few fans. Here's everything that players need to know about the other maps.

Current ARK Survival Ascended DLC roadmap: When do all the updates go live?

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The Extra Life Stream to wrap up the game’s development for its first early access year laid out the following ARK Survival Ascended DLC roadmap:

Scorched Earth: April 1st, 2024
The Center: June 3, 2024
Aberration: May 2024
Ragnarok: September 2024
Extinction: October 2024
Valguero: December 2024
Genesis Part 1: February 2025
Crystal Isles: April 2025
Genesis Part 2: May 2025
Lost Island: August 2025
Fjordur: October 2025

It's worth noting that the release months are subject to change. They could get delayed should the developers run into a roadblock while releasing the maps.

After a round of delays on The Center map, Ark Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth was the first DLC to be released this year. Alongside the new playable official maps, the hype surrounding the DLCs is partially owing to the release of new creatures.

Creatures in Ark Survival Ascended are one-to-one recreations of dinos from Ark Survival Evolved, albeit sometimes with added visual flair and new abilities. The Ark Survival Ascended DLCs laid out on this roadmap, however, will release completely new creatures voted by the community.

There is some controversy surrounding the proposed pay-walling on some of these creatures. The Oasisaur, for example, is gated behind the Adventure Pack. This is a paid expansion you have to buy, even though its assets shipped with Ark Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth.

Complete ARK Survival Ascended map release schedule (2024)

A port of the Center is up next on Ark's new DLC release menu (Image via Studio Wildcard)

The original game, ARK Survival Evolved, has eleven maps (or ARKs), including six ‘non-canon’ ones. The developers plan to eventually remaster all ten alternate maps on Unreal Engine 5 for ARK Survival Ascended, starting with the release of The Center this February.

While the DLCs will be paid, the new maps will be available for all owners of the base game to try out after their official release. As per the official roadmap, the following is a rough estimation of the official map release schedule for ARK Survival Ascended:

ARK Survival Ascended map	Release date (estimated)	Description
The Center	June 3rd, 2024	An island featuring a giant floating islet towering over its center.
The Desert Map (Scorched Earth)	April 1st, 2024	Wild West-themed desert map that does the obvious: make water scarce, plus water evaporates from canteens and jars.
The Underground Map (Aberration)	May 2024	Subterranean map that comes with the threat of earthquakes, high-temperature zones, poison mushrooms, and more.
The Norse Map (Ragnarok)	September 2024	An appropriately Norse-themed map with ruins of Viking boats, longhouses, and hot springs.
The Corrupted Earth Map (Extinction)	October 2024	A post-apocalyptic landmass on Earth with unique materials, unique loot, and multiple proto-ARKs.
The Grand Map (Valguero)	December 2024	A diverse and beautiful land-locked map featuring min-Aberration underground trenches, a huge dungeon, auroras, and rainbows.
The Simulated Map (Genesis: Part 1)	February 2025	Five different biomes ranging from the surface of an unknown Alien star to huge underground Ocean trenches, clubbed together inside a simulation.
The Crystalline Map (Crystal Isles)	April 2025	An eldritch fever dream of a map rich in resources, featuring a Giant Bee Hive with Dire Bears inside it.
The Colony Ship (Genesis: Part 2)	May 2025	Artificial landmasses atop a colony ship suspended in Outer Space, featuring two rings connected by a bridge.
Lost Island	August 2025	An adventure fiction-themed treasure island featuring lava streams and shipwrecks.
Fjordur	October 2025	A map with portals to three different realms, combining Viking myth with Tolkien-inspired high fantasy.

Ark Survival Ascended release schedule for new dinos: what new creatures are coming?

Shastasaurus is one of the latest upcoming Ark Survival Ascended creatures (Image via Studio Wildcard)

New community-voted creatures

Ark Survival Ascended currently does not have as many creatures as the old UE4 title, Ark Survival Evolved.

As the developers release recreations of the original Ark Survival Evolved expansions, they will also release legacy creatures tied to the new maps. To up the ante, completely new community-voted creatures will also be added to the maps with each DLC.

The following are the confirmed exclusive new dinos thus far:

Giganotoraptor: Released on February 28th, 2024. Here's how to tame a Giganotoraptor in Ark Survival Ascended.
Fasolasuchus: Released with Ark Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth. Here's how to tame a Fasolasuchus.
Oasisaur: Obtainable with the Adventure Pack expansion. Here's how to tame an Oasisaur.
Shastasaurus: Releasing with The Center this June.

Returning legacy creatures from Ark Survival Evolved

The following are the legacy creatures that released alongside the DLCs:

Scorched Earth: Jerboa, Death Worm, Wyvern, Mantis, Morellatops, Rock Elemental, Vulture, Manticore, Jug Bug, Lymantria, Thorny Dragon.

Check out other guides on this game:

ASA Fishing Guide || ASA Breeding and Mutations || All ASA Explorer Notes locations || Best ASA tame for every resource || Cave locations on The Island || All ASA Kibble Recipes