Studio Wildcard has unveiled a massive free update for ARK: Survival Ascended titled Ragnarok Ascended, bringing significant expansions to the game's map and marking the triumphant return of the fearsome Ice Wyvern. Originally released as a remastered version of the popular dinosaur survival game ARK: Survival Evolved, ARK: Survival Ascended has been receiving regular content updates since its October 2023 launch. The game underwent a major technical upgrade in March 2025, transitioning to Unreal Engine 5 to enhance performance and address engine-related issues.

The Ragnarok update represents the second major milestone in Studio Wildcard's content roadmap for ARK: Survival Ascended. While initially planned for an April release, the DLC was postponed until June to allow for additional testing and crucial bug fixes. According to the development schedule, a premium map is also slated for release this month, though details remain under wraps.

The Ragnarok update went live on June 20, introducing four distinct new biomes, a formidable Bison companion, and the legendary Ice Wyvern. These biomes are organized as separate islands: the expansive plateaus of the Scotland Expansion, the lush forested plains of the Alpines, the towering canopies of the Redwoods Expansion, and the scorching sands of the Desert Expansion. Together, these areas offer 144 square kilometers of explorable terrain, packed with harvestable resources, opportunities for new base construction, and diverse creatures to discover.

The Ragnarok expansion launched alongside the Lost Colony Expansion Pass, which grants access to exclusive content including tameable Drakelings, the Veilwyn companion, a new skill tree system, the Template Hammer, TEK Bunker, and DarkTek Cosmetics. As the game's first narrative expansion, Lost Colony's cutscenes were animated by MAPPA, the renowned studio behind Attack on Titan and Jujutsu Kaisen, with a scheduled release date of December 2025.

Studio Wildcard continues working to regain the trust of ARK: Survival Evolved veterans following the rocky launch of ARK: Survival Ascended. The game currently holds a 'Mixed' rating on Steam with 59% positive reviews from over 70,000 players. With the recent UE5 transition and the familiar content from Ragnarok now available in the remastered version, the developers hope to improve player sentiment moving forward.