If you’re one of the millions that have sunk hours into ARK: Survival Evolved, the shocking news of the remaster may have caught you off guard like a T-Rex in the water. But, when one door closes, another one opens, and this title is getting the door slammed right in its face. But, when will the official servers shut down, and can you still play the game on unofficial servers once they have been closed for good on all platforms?
When Do ARK: Survival Evolved Official Servers Get Shut Down?
With the surprise announcement of ARK: Survival Ascended, players will get a chance to start anew in a remastered version of their favorite survival game. While cross-play and cross-progression will not be available, you’ll still be able to jump on unofficial servers or play with friends in your home with the servers go down in August 2023.
Related: Wildcard Responds to ARK UE5 Remake Backlash After Going Back on “Free” Promise
It’s still hard to know exactly who this remake is for; besides maybe those that are interested in getting into the ARK series for the first time, the ability to play on Unofficial servers and locally can help keep the community for this original game alive and kicking for a fair while after the official servers have been shut down. Hopefully, Wildcard will give players the chance to bring their progress over to this remaster, but only time will tell if the damage has already been done.
Thankfully, consoles do have support for unofficial servers, but you may encounter some people that are hacking and making the game less fun for others, so you may need to create your own or join a trusted one to ensure the game is still feeling great for you overall. That being said, at least community support will keep this title afloat for years to come.
If you’re not planning on jumping the ARK ship just yet, make sure to tune into our ARK: Survival Evolved section below, where you can learn everything you need to know about the game if you’re jumping in for the first time or brush up on your favorite dino kibble types if you’re a long time player.
