Is Ark: Survival Evolved on mobile (Android/iOS)?

Yes, Ark: Survival Evolved is available on Android and iOS. The full platform list: PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Android and iOS.

Ark: Survival Evolved

PSLX

16Full Release

What this is

A prehistoric survival sandbox where taming dinosaurs turns a hostile island into your evolving base.

What you actually do

You gather resources, craft equipment, build shelter, and tame creatures for transport or combat. Survival demands constant preparation, and death, raids, and lost tames can erase substantial progress.

Verdict

Taming Meets Relentless Grind

ARK turns survival into a long-term project of building shelter, taming dinosaurs, and expanding your options. Its emergent moments are compelling, but the grind, steep onboarding, and recurring technical problems demand patience.

User reviews first

Steam recent first

Is it for you?

What shines

Highly flexible sandbox systems
Memorable emergent survival moments
Extensive mod support
Strong creature-taming appeal

What to know

Poor optimization on some systems
Frequent bugs and crashes
Extremely large installation size
Repetitive resource grinding
Steep learning curve
Multiplayer connection problems

Quick facts

Genre

Open World Survival CraftDinosaurs

View

First + Third person

Solo

Co-op

PvP

optional

Length

69h

Entry

Can start here

Pricing

Paid

MTX

Account required

Active Support

Crossplay

+Best if

You want a flexible sandbox where taming a creature can change how you travel, gather, and fight.

!Skip it if

You want a polished, low-grind game that respects short sessions and avoids repeated setbacks.

Developer

Studio Wildcard

Publisher

Studio Wildcard

Release

Aug 27, 2017

Game DNA

Rhythm

Mixed pace

Depth

Deep & complex

Mood

ChallengingImmersiveSocial

Freedom & replay

Building

Also tagged

CraftingBase-BuildingRPG

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Your role and how it develops

Your role

You are the planner and survivor, responsible for gathering supplies, securing shelter, taming useful creatures, and choosing how far to push into danger.

Learning and mastery

The opening is demanding and explains little, so expect experimentation, early deaths, and a gradual grasp of its many systems.

Replay and variation

Very high, with solo, cooperative, competitive, building, taming, and self-directed progression supporting different long-term goals.

Systems you interact with

What you actually engage with

Survival needs

Manage hunger, thirst, temperature, and danger while establishing a foothold.

Resource gathering

Collect materials from the environment to support survival and expansion.

Crafting

Turn gathered resources into tools, equipment, and other useful gear.

Base building

Construct and improve shelters that support storage, crafting, and protection.

Creature taming

Tame dinosaurs and other creatures for transport, utility, and combat.

Character progression

Develop your survivor and unlock more capable equipment over time.

Tribes and cooperation

Work with other players to share responsibilities and build a stronger foothold.

PvP survival

Protect your progress and compete with other survivors where enabled.

topic

Time investment

How long it takes

HowLongToBeat

Main story

focused run

69h

Main + extras

story and side content

314h

Completionist

full clear

953h

Session fit

What the time commitment feels like

When it clicks

The early game asks for immediate survival work before the larger sandbox opens up.

Session constraints

Routine gathering, long taming processes, and recovering from death can make progress feel slow.

Best session rhythm

It works best as a persistent project, with short supply runs feeding into longer building, taming, and exploration sessions.

DLC timing

Consider additional content after the base survival and progression loop has earned your attention.

topic

Review interpretation

Current mood

Players are still hooked by ARK's survival loop, even while calling out bugs, crashes, demanding performance, and a heavy time commitment.

Why it works

Taming dinosaurs, building bases, exploring, surviving, and playing cooperatively create memorable emergent adventures with strong replay pull.

Critic gap

Players often find an addictive, endlessly replayable survival sandbox, while critics more consistently emphasize grinding, instability, and a steep learning curve.

What players value

Taming, breeding, and living alongside dinosaurs

high

Players repeatedly praise the fun of taming, breeding, and caring for dinosaurs as a core source of attachment and progression.

Building and survival progression

high

Gathering resources, building bases, and gradually becoming more capable give the survival loop a strong sense of accomplishment.

Cooperative play

medium

Playing with friends or family makes the challenges more enjoyable and helps the demanding survival systems shine.

Exploration and emergent adventure

medium

Dangerous encounters and unpredictable survival stories create a distinctive adventure that keeps players returning.

Evidence-backed risks

Bugs, crashes, and lost progress

highreviews

Recent players report crashes, glitches, launch problems, and losing saves, items, or creatures.

Large storage footprint and demanding performance

highreviews and critics

Players describe the installation as very large, with long loading and poor optimization that can make performance difficult on some systems.

Steep difficulty and grind

highreviews and critics

The game can be punishing solo, with demanding progression and substantial grinding before its most rewarding moments.

Updates can disrupt mods and existing play

highreviews

Players report that a major update broke mods, servers, maps, settings, and character data.

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Support status

Developer activity

Events, not updates

Last game updateJan 16, 2026 · 6 months ago

Last official postJul 10, 2026 · 11 days ago

Updates (12 mo)1

Posts (12 mo)15

CadenceFrequent

SourceSteam

Official Steam news

Latest from the developer

Jan 16, 2026Updateopen
ARK: Aquatica Official servers update
Good Afternoon, Studio Sirens would like to begin this announcement by thanking the ARK: Survival Evolved community for your involvement and time spent with the Aquatica DLC, generating awesome memories and content for years to come. Friday, January 30th : UTC - 18:00 PM Chinese Standard time - 02:00 AM Pacific (PST)...

topic

Questions people search

answered from verified data

No, Ark: Survival Evolved is a paid game, not free-to-play.