On the surface Ark: Survival Evolved appears to be a simple survival simulator, but underneath is a web of complex systems as players craft, build, tame, breed, and gather resources. After all a standard run of the game is in the ballpark of 60 hours and a completionist run is north of 400 hours to finish.

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There is a notable shift in the game where players go from struggling to survive to taking down bosses for fun. For players struggling in the beginning or looking to advance into the challenging endgame there are some pro tips to keep in mind.

10 Track Down Drop Zones

Whether the player is just starting out or riding astride a T-Rex it’s important to take time to track down drop zones. These beacons of light indicate loot crates that contain everything from blueprints to powerful weapons.

This is also the only way to obtain certain blueprints that allow players to craft and build things. There are literally hundreds of reasons to track these down and players should be prepared to go after each and every one of them their level can open. Not only is it necessary to unlock endgame content it tremendously speeds up growth thanks to the valuable loot inside.

9 Breed Tek Parasaurs

Players should be breeding just about every type of dinosaur and creature in this open world game, but a strong consideration should be made for Tek Parasuars. Parasaurs in general are only useful in the beginning as fast mounts, but the Tek variation can serve this and a more valuable purpose well into the endgame.

Players can breed a host of Tek Parasaurs, kill them, and then harvest the bodies with a Chainsaw. This nets all kinds of valuable resources like Oil, Scrap Metal, and the big one Electronics. It’s a fantastic way to amass harder to obtain resources and all it takes to start are two Tek Parasaurs.

8 Cryopods

Cryopods are an incredibly underrated item among the playerbase. Cryopods can be used to store dinosaurs making them incredibly easy to transport over long distances. Also any dinosaur inside a Cryopod will passively receive experience.

Admittedly players will need to be level 51 to craft these. But the resource cost is cheap and it’s a great way to move a lot of dinos and level up a few over time. Its important not to carry all dinos at once or the player risks losing them upon death.

7 Avoid The Water, Then Exploit It

In the beginning and into the mid game players should be avoiding the water. From small ponds to the horrifying open ocean there are various threats like crocodiles and massive prehistoric sharks that can quickly eviscerate the player.

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But in the midgame when players have some more resources, gear, and creatures this mind set becomes very limiting. The open water is a vast treasure trove of resources and powerful creatures that can be exploited. Once players obtain their first Megalodon or Ickthyosaurus they’ll notice the difference.

6 Dedicate Time To Breeding

The most time consuming aspect of this game is breeding and for good reason. It’s the single best way to obtain the most powerful creatures and to expand their capabilities. Breeding two powerful creatures together can result in offspring that have both sets of superior stats. Then those can be bred together to make even more powerful offspring.

It takes time, a lot of time, but it is worth it in the long run. Players shouldn’t feel compelled to breed mass amounts of every animal in the game. But even just choosing a handful will consume many, many hours in the long run.

5 Pair Defending Dinos With An Anchor

One incredible use of dinosaurs is having them protect the player’s base. It’s very effective at warding off other players and can prevent the bigger monstrosities from wreaking havoc. But as most Ark players will know, convincing dinosaurs to stay put and not wander off is a challenge.

A really good tip is to have a non-aggressive creature residing inside the base then direct all defending dinosaurs to follow that creature. Players can have a team of Raptors stationed outside directed to follow the beaver-like Castoroide inside. The Raptors will fight off attackers and then return to where the Castoroide is stationed when they’re done.

4 Prioritize Defenses

Many games teach players to prioritize offense over defense.  While this usually works in other games, it’s a handicap in Ark. Whether it’s commanding a squad of dinosaurs to gather resources or smelting at a base it’s important to have the right defenses in place.

This means having walls, traps, turrets, defending dinosaurs and other measures. There are a lot of players and roaming dinosaurs in the open world that can quickly ruin your day. It’s vital to have multiple layers of security to act as a deterrent and provide you with a fighting chance.

3 Tame Everything

Nearly every creature in this game is ideally suited for something. For instance, Ickthyosaurus’ are great for fast water travel and exploring the ocean, Quetzals serve as flying bases and mass resource carriers, and Doedicurus are great for harvesting obsidian. Whatever the player can do manually a creature out there can do it better.

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There’s also the fact that players will need to learn to tame weaker creatures to gain the ingredients to make kibble for the better ones. As a result players should settle themselves in for the long grind of being able to tame every monster in the game.

2 Take Time To Improve Systems

What should be apparent by now is that the player has a lot of things to do in this game and the biggest obstacle is going to be time. Because of this players should set aside some time on longer play sessions to find ways to improve the things they do.

This tip is incredibly helpful for making Ark more enjoyable and freeing up time to do other things. If players can find a way to gather berries quicker, say using a Brontosaurus to gather and a Stegosaurus to carry it all, that will free up time to do other things. There is always a better, more efficient, or more creative way to do something and figuring that out frees up a tremendous amount of time. Remember that automation is king.

1 Learn To Use Tame Groups

Perhaps the greatest tip that many players aren’t aware of is using tame groups to organize and direct creatures. It’s possible within this open world to assign creatures to a particular group. This group then obeys unique whistles for that group and respond accordingly.

Players can then organize teams of creatures to carry out activities. For instance a player can have a Tame Group of Raptors defending a Doedicurus while its gathering stone. Or a pack of Wolves can sweep through an area killing all the animals. The player can then call them back and send out Hyenadons to gather all the meat. Learning how to use and organize Tame Groups will have a dramatic impact on how the game plays moving forward.

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