ARK: Survival Evolved's latest and final expansion ARK: Genesis Part 2 is live, and it includes appearances from actors David Tennant and Vin Diesel.
The expansion, which completes the "eons-spanning story" of ARK: Survival Evolved, adds a multitude of new content to the game, including new missions, worlds, creatures and gear. It also introduces Tennant as series villain Sir Edmund Rockwell, and Diesel, who will be starring as Santiago in the upcoming sequel Ark 2. Diesel's part in the expansion is foreshadowed by his appearance at the conclusion of its trailer, where he wordlessly emerges from a futuristic pod.
ARK: Genesis Part 2 sees the player emerging from the Genesis Simulation to a gigantic starship being overtaken by Sir Edmund Rockwell. "In Genesis Part 2, you’ll explore a vast new world teeming with strange biomes and exotic creatures, while engaging in story-oriented missions that test your mettle, ingenuity, and survival skills," states the description on the game's official community forums. "Wielding an array of powerful new tames, items, weapons, and structures, you’ll journey from idyllic fields through twilit phantasmagoric realms, all the way into a hellish heart of darkness."
Companion and holographic guide HLN-A, voiced by Amber Lee Connors, offers the player a variety of narrative-based missions of varying difficulties prior to the final battle against Rockwell. These missions will earn the player map-wide bonuses and currency to access additional resources. Explorer Notes and environmental cues will inform the player of the history of the ARK saga. In addition, the spaceship that the player emerges to will boast unique biomes ranging from the depths of outer space to the bowels of Rockwell himself.
The expansion also adds brand new creatures to the game in addition to evolved R-Variants of old favorites. This includes new bosses and minibosses to challenge, which can be defeated using powerful new gear. Some of the gear and abilities introduced in the expansion include remote cameras, a floating skateboard-like Hoversail, a high-tech incubator to take care of eggs, a Tek Bow that shoots arrows of pure energy and an RTS command mode within the new Exo-Mek.
The expansion concludes the six-year-old open-world survival game in anticipation of ARK 2, which is currently scheduled for a 2022 release. ARK 2 features Diesel not only in a starring role but as one of the game's executive producers (netting him the official title of Studio Wildcard's President of Creative Convergence).
Developed and published by Studio Wildcard, ARK: Survival Evolved is available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Stadia, Android, iOS and PC.
Source: Studio Wildcard