‘ARK: Survival Evolved’ PC Patch Brings New Sabertooth And Ton Of Fixes, Console Update Pushed To Next Week

Studio Wildcard is still furiously cleaning up around ARK: Survival Evolved. A new PC patch dropped Friday morning with a huge list of fixes and tweaks. Some of the more interesting changes include a new Sabertooth model, the addition of the Tek Trough, and the reduction of the cost to use some Tek structures.

ARK: Survival Evolved PC patch 260.0 is available to download now and is the second patch in a week for the platform. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One update originally planned to be released right after the last patch (259) was delayed at the last second due to Studio Wildcard finding a nasty bug that needed to be dealt with.

The work on the current PC patch plus the plan to release the Ragnarok map to all platforms on Tuesday, July 4 resulted in the developer feeling like it would be better to wrap everything up together in one console update for next week due to the time it takes to get through certification.

Update: A couple of issues slipped through with this ARK patch. New Alpha drops were inadvertently made a requirement to summon bosses. Worse, bases on PVE servers for The Island were wiped. Studio Wildcard Community Manager Jen explained both will be fixed soon via Twitter. The latter with a rollback of official servers.

Here is a breakdown of the major changes in the ARK: Survival Evolved 260 patch for the PC. Click-through for the complete patch notes.

Changes to ARK Animals

The Sabertooth received an all new in-game model and some tweaks. It can now harvest more hide and pelt, making it the preferred beast to do so in the game. The developers also reduced the amount of fall damage it takes.

To help make the Sabertooth the superior pelt and hide harvester, the Dire Wolf took a 15 percent reduction in the amount of the two it harvests. It is still better than all of the other carnivores in the game, but is now second to the big cat.

Hope you guys like the new kitty! Comes with superior hide and pelt gathering, and reduced fall damage. ? pic.twitter.com/ARxuwKqSRa

— Jennifer Stuber (@bubblywums) June 30, 2017

The Ankylo will now gather berries using the alternate fire instead of the primary fire. Meanwhile, the aggro range of the Manta has been reduced and Eurypterid spawn numbers have been increased by 50 percent.

There are numerous other little tweaks to dinosaurs like Studio Wildcard making sure all animals have proper swim animations and will generate the correct sounds when walking on land or through water and jumping. Additionally, all land creatures can now use their attack while in the water.

Alpha creatures have been given additional unique loot drops. This includes the Giga Heart, Basilo Blubber, Spino Sail, Yuty Lungs, Allo Brain, Therizino Claws, Thylaleo Hook-Claw, Megalania Toxin, Sarco Skin, Titanoboa Venom.

Finally, players can now fish from the back of the Pelagornis when riding the big bird in the water.

Changes to ARK Structures

The Tek Tier received a balancing pass with the addition of the Tek Trough, which keeps food refrigerated so it doesn’t spoil as quickly like with the regular Trough.

The Tek Generator now uses less resources than before to run while the Tek Teleporter no longer requires the Element resource to use. This is good news for higher-level players as the cost of using Tek structures was prohibitive even for large tribes.

Some building exploits in ARK: Survival Evolved were also addressed by Studio Wildcard. Players will no longer be allowed to build multiple floors underneath rafts and platform saddles.

In a nice quality of life upgrade for builders, a placement outline has been placed on structures to indicate the direction facing via color change.

Changes to ARK Weapons

One tweak to the slingshot was included in the ARK: Survival Evolved 260 patch. The weapon was hit with a 25 percent torpor reduction. This will affect the early game for many players as the slingshot is typically used to knock out a first animal to tame.

The only other weapon change is an increase in volume for the spear when it hits a target.

Changes to ARK Singleplayer

Those that like to go it alone in ARK: Survival Evolved have received some alterations to the base game. This includes the automatic creation of tribes, an increase in crop growth speed, and a doubling of the rate of consumption of gasoline and element by the regular generator and the Tek generator. Additionally, the cost to make gasoline has been increased to six oil and five hide to produce five gasoline.

[Featured Image by Studio Wildcard]