Did you ever dream of riding a dinosaur when you were a kid? I sure as hell did, and you better believe I cried my tiny eyes out when I was told that they were all dead. I was offered a multitude of pony rides as a substitute but politely declined on the basis that a pony is not even close to a dinosaur.
If the dino-riding dream is still very much alive in you – and it should be – then you’ll be pleased to hear that the Epic Games Store is currently giving away ARK: Survival Evolved for free on PC until June 18. If you download it now, it’s yours to keep forever.
In case you haven’t already guessed, ARK: Survival Evolved involves a lot of mounting dinosaurs and riding them into glorious battle.
Set in a 36km2 open world, you’ll begin the game pretty much naked with no items at all. From there, you’ll need to gather resources, keep yourself fed and hydrated by hunting or harvesting crops, build shelter, craft weapons to protect yourself and more. As you progress, the list of things you can make will become longer and more complex until you’re kitted out with rad futuristic tech.
“Stranded on the shores of a mysterious island, you must learn to survive,” the description for ARK: Survival Evolved says. “Use your cunning to kill or tame the primaeval creatures roaming the land, and encounter other players to survive, dominate… and escape!”
A big part of the gameplay for ARK: Survival Evolved includes playing online with others, but there is an option to play it solo if that’s more your speed. That being said, what could be more fun than fanging around on dinosaurs with your mates? Not bloody much, let me tell you. You won’t be forced into any missions or quest if you don’t want to, either. ARK: Survival Evolved simply gives you the tools to have a good time and lets you do whatever the hell you want with them.
I should also mention that you can build full-blown bases on the backs of gargantuanly huge dinos. That feels very, very important. Go ahead and tell me you’ve never wanted a DINOSAUR CARAVAN. Yeah, that’s what I thought.
ARK: Survival Evolved was first released as an early access PC title on Steam in mid-2015, moving to a full release on PC, Xbox One and PS4 in August of 2017, with Nintendo Switch following in 2018. By August 2016, the game had sold over 5.5 million copies across both PC and Xbox One.
The Epic Games Store has been giving away some absolutely massive titles recently, kicking off with Grand Theft Auto V, followed by Civilization VI and Borderlands: The Handsome Collection. So if you’re ready to ride some dinos, be sure to jump into the Epic Games Store to get ARK: Survival Evolved free on PC before June 18. Once it’s in your library, it’s yours to keep forever.
Catch me riding my raptor around like a maniac. Let’s joust.
