ARK Genesis Ascended Part 1 - Release Date & Everything New

ARK Genesis Ascended Part 1 launches on June 25, 2026, and it's not the simple remaster fans were expecting. Studio Wildcard is rebuilding all five biomes from the ground up, blowing the ocean wide open into a full naval sandbox, and pairing the launch with a brand-new paid pirate expansion, Bob's True Tales: Tides of Fortune. Here's everything you need to know.

ARK Genesis Ascended Part 1 official key art

The Genesis Ascended Part 1 map itself is free for everyone who owns ARK: Survival Ascended, following the same model as previous remastered maps. The Tides of Fortune expansion is the paid companion piece, and it's where the new pirate ships and creatures come from.

What is ARK Genesis Part 1?

Genesis Part 1 originally launched in 2020 as ARK's most experimental expansion. Instead of one open world, it drops you inside a simulation made of five separate biomes: a bog, an arctic, an ocean, a volcanic zone, and a lunar landscape. You teleport between them using an in-game AI companion called HLN-A.

It also added a mission system. Across the five biomes there are 176 missions you can run for XP, a currency called Hexagons, and loot. Think of Genesis as ARK's take on a theme park: lots of small, focused experiences instead of one big open world.

That structure is staying intact for the Ascended version. What's changing is the ocean.

The ocean rebuild changes everything

This is the big one. In the original Genesis, the ocean biome was small, a contained zone with a few underwater set pieces. The Ascended version blows it wide open.

Studio Wildcard co-founder Jeremy Stieglitz has described the new ocean as "miles of open water", packed with randomly generated islands, fortresses, and landmasses to explore. It's no longer a side area. It's a full sandbox the size of a regular ARK map, designed from the ground up for naval combat.

Here's what comes with that:

Real water physics. Wildcard built a proper simulated ocean with buoyancy and wave behavior. Every Genesis Ascended Part 1 player gets this for free, even without the paid DLC.
Customizable physical ships. You can build ships, mount cannons on them, attach modules, and even haul your tamed dinosaurs across the sea.
Naval battles. Both PvP fleet combat and PvE adventure scenarios are part of the design.

Wildcard has been open about where the new ocean tech comes from: Atlas, the studio's troubled pirate survival game from 2018. Atlas had real problems as a game, but its water and ship simulation were genuinely good. Those systems are being rebuilt and added to ARK.

Two new creatures: Palaeoctopus and Tidepup

Two new creatures debut with Genesis Ascended Part 1.

The Palaeoctopus is the community-voted creature for the free map. It's a Late Cretaceous octopus relative with color-changing camouflage, the ability to scale sheer cliffs, and a habit of dragging unlucky survivors into crushing tentacle holds. Tamed, it produces ink in any color you want, climbs walls and onto moving ships, and brings real danger to anyone hugging the coastline.

The Tidepup is more of a wildcard. Revealed in Community Crunch 504, it starts as a small companion that sits on your shoulder. But it grows, sometimes dramatically, depending on how you raise it. Wildcard has called it a "support-style creature" without giving full details yet. The Tidepup only comes with the paid Tides of Fortune DLC.

All the original Genesis creatures are returning too: Bloodstalker, Ferox, Magmasaur, Megachelon, and Astrocetus, along with the boosted X-Creature variants that only spawn inside the simulation.

Bob's True Tales: Tides of Fortune (Paid DLC)

Tides of Fortune is the paid pirate-themed companion DLC, launching the same day as Genesis Ascended Part 1 on June 25, 2026. It's the first chapter in a new series called Bob's True Tales, picking up the Bob and Meeka storyline from the previous Bob's Tall Tales expansion pass.

What's confirmed so far:

Fully customizable pirate ships
Pirate-themed structures, weapons, and cosmetic skins
The Tidepup creature
A new story arc built around the search for something called the Eternal Cave

If you don't buy Tides of Fortune, you can still use items crafted by players who do own it. You just can't learn the engrams to craft them yourself, or tame the DLC creatures.

Studio Wildcard hasn't announced a price yet. For comparison, the previous Bob's Tall Tales expansion pass launched at $29.99 for three chapters, so Tides of Fortune should land in a similar range.

The other four biomes: Bog, Arctic, Volcanic, and Lunar

While the ocean is getting most of the attention, the other Genesis Ascended Part 1 biomes are getting the full Unreal Engine 5 treatment too: new art, new lighting, level design tweaks. Each one keeps its identity:

The Bog. A massive swamp filled with Titan Trees, blood-sucking Bloodstalkers, and dense vegetation that's perfect for ambushes.
The Arctic. Frozen peaks, avalanches, blizzards, and a whited-out eastern zone where the Ferox roams.
The Volcanic. Lava, ash, and the occasional eruption. Magmasaur territory.
The Lunar. Low gravity, no air, oxygen vents that launch you between asteroids, and the space-whale Astrocetus drifting overhead.

The HLN-A teleport system carries over, so you can still hop between biomes with your inventory and nearby tames in tow.

FAQ

When does ARK Genesis Ascended Part 1 release?
Genesis Ascended Part 1 launches on June 25, 2026, on PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

Is Genesis Ascended Part 1 free?
Yes. The map itself is free for everyone who owns ARK: Survival Ascended. Only Bob's True Tales: Tides of Fortune is paid.

What new creatures come with Genesis Ascended Part 1?
Two: the Palaeoctopus, included with the free map, and the Tidepup, included with the paid Tides of Fortune DLC.

Do I need Tides of Fortune to play Genesis Ascended Part 1?
No. The map, biomes, mission system, Palaeoctopus, and upgraded ocean physics are all free. Tides of Fortune adds ships, pirate structures, the Tidepup, and a new storyline as a paid expansion.

How big is the new Ocean biome?
Studio Wildcard has described it as "miles of open water", a full map-sized ocean with randomly generated islands, fortresses, and landmasses, designed for large-scale naval gameplay.

Fusey will keep this guide updated as Studio Wildcard releases more details ahead of launch. Stay tuned.