ARK Spinoff Reaches Major Player Milestone with Free-to-Play Model

Summary

• ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition surpassed 3 million downloads in just 3 weeks after its launch.
• The game faces mixed reviews but continues to rise in popularity on iOS and Android.
• Grove Street Games plans to add new maps and content to the dinosaur-infested world in the future.

ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition, the latest free-to-play mobile game from the ARK franchise, has achieved a remarkable milestone by reaching over three million downloads within just three weeks of its launch on December 18, 2024. This survival game, set in the same universe as the 2017 hit ARK: Survival Evolved, has captured the attention of mobile gamers on both iOS and Android platforms.

Despite receiving mixed reviews upon its release, ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition follows in the footsteps of its predecessor, which also saw significant success despite similar critical reception. ARK: Survival Evolved not only sold over a million copies before its official launch but was later remastered and released as ARK: Survival Ascended in early access in 2023, featuring a major graphical overhaul. The ARK franchise, owned by Studio Wildcard, has since expanded with several spin-off titles, with ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition being the latest addition, developed by Grove Street Games.

On January 10, 2025, Snail Games, the publisher of ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition, announced that the game had exceeded three million downloads in its initial three weeks, significantly outperforming the 2018 mobile launch of ARK: Survival Evolved by a 100% increase in player downloads. Grove Street Games is also actively working on enhancing the game's content, planning to introduce new maps such as Ragnarok, Extinction, Genesis Part 1, and Genesis Part 2, further enriching the dinosaur-filled world of ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition.

ARK Mobile Game Sees Promising Launch Stats, Marks Another Strong Release by the Developer

The mobile game's strong performance is evident not only in its download numbers but also in its rising popularity on app stores. Currently, ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition ranks 24th among adventure games on the iOS App Store and 9th among top-grossing adventure games on the Android Play Store. The game has garnered ratings of 3.9 out of 5 from 412 reviews on the App Store and 3.6 out of 5 from over 52,500 reviews on the Play Store. This launch marks another successful release by Grove Street Games, which previously developed the enhanced Nintendo Switch port of ARK: Survival Evolved in 2022.

Following its debut on mobile platforms last month, ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition is slated to become available on the Epic Games Store in 2025, offering players more options for accessing the game. Meanwhile, Studio Wildcard has provided an updated roadmap for ARK: Survival Ascended, detailing future content updates. Fans are also eagerly awaiting news on ARK 2, which unfortunately missed its anticipated late 2024 release window.