On February 26, the ARK: Survival Evolved expansion Genesis was released for PC, PS4, and Xbox One. We tell you what is new and what content you get with the Season Pass.
Genesis launched on the morning of February 26 after a multi-hour delay. PC, PS4, and Xbox One players can now dive into the new map. But what is new and what is the deal with the Season Pass? You can find out everything about the content here.
The Season Pass Content
ARK Genesis is the first expansion to be released in two parts. Part 1 is already online, while Part 2 is expected to be released at the end of 2020.
- What’s included: The Season Pass only contains Genesis Part 1 and Part 2. The expansions cannot be purchased individually.
- The price: For €29.99 on Steam and €34.99 in the Xbox and PlayStation stores, you get the two expansions.
You can buy the Season Pass here:
The new Genesis Map
The map in Genesis is smaller than we initially assumed. There are only 4 biomes on Earth, and the moon can also be visited.
- Swamp Area
- Water Area with small islands
- Ice Landscape
- Volcanic Landscape
- Moon with low gravity
High Difficulty Level
The difficulty level in Genesis is very high. The swamp area is one of the easier starting areas, but even here players are immediately attacked by insects or worse right after spawning. Surviving for new players is likely to be a significant challenge.
The biomes are all relatively small and do not offer much space for building. Resources are scarce, and according to your new drone HLN-A, only the best will survive Genesis.
Steam description highlights the difficulty level:
ARK: Genesis takes your story in a completely new direction – and your skills determine your success. Everything is set to the highest level: the challenges, the dangers … and the enormous rewards. Only the toughest and smartest survivors will pass all the numerous tests of the simulation. Will you be one of them?
ARK Steam page
7 new Dinos for Genesis
With the first part of the expansion, 7 new creatures are already coming into play. We have described the 5 coolest Dinos for you in more detail.
- Astrocetus: The Space Whale. Found in space.
- Blade Wasp: A wasp species that appears in swarms and is native to the swamp.
- Bloodstalker: A spider-like creature that you can use as an exoskeleton. Found in the swamp.
- Ferox: Small, cute, and very dangerous. Native to the snowy area.
- Giant Tortoise: A floating base in the water area.
- Magmasaur: A very dangerous fire lizard. Lives in the volcanic area.
- Moeder: The first underwater boss in ARK.
- Other variations: Many new variations of old dino species. For example, a fiery Triceratops.
Quests and In-Game Currency
With the drone HLN-A, which accompanies you as a pet in Genesis, missions have been added. The tasks vary, and you can complete a set number per area. The missions include:
- Treasure Hunt
- Dino Racing
- Defeating waves of enemies
- Tracking down and defeating bosses
- Escort missions
- And much more
Where to get the missions: You do not directly receive the quests from HLN-A; you must find them. Scattered throughout the world are small terminals where you can select the task in the 3 difficulty levels Alpha, Beta, or Gamma.
Your Rewards: For each completed task, you receive Hexagons, which you can use to teleport between biomes. You can also use them to obtain resources and TEK items. Additionally, you will receive 1000 Hexagons for clearing glitches in the world at the push of a button. Your drone will then tell you something interesting about Genesis.
After completing a certain number of tasks, you will receive a mission from HLN-A called “The Final Test”. However, no one yet knows what it entails.
Have you already checked out Genesis? If so, we would be interested in your opinion on the new expansion.
