ARK: Survival Evolved vs ELDEN RING
ARK: Survival Evolved and ELDEN RING both land in Action, RPG on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, RPG on Steam. ARK: Survival Evolved (2017) is 5 years older than ELDEN RING (2022). ELDEN RING scores higher on Steam reviews (94.3% positive) than ARK: Survival Evolved (80.8% positive). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Side-by-side comparison
 ARK: Survival Evolved |  ELDEN RING | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2022 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer, RPG | Action, RPG |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | 14.99 USD | 59.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 80.8% positive (253,840 reviews) | 94.3% positive (426,636 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Co-op | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Studio Wildcard, Instinct Games, Efecto Studios, Virtual Basement LLC | FromSoftware, Inc. |
Side by side
- Both share Action, RPG on Steam.
- ARK: Survival Evolved (2017) is 5 years older than ELDEN RING (2022).
- ELDEN RING scores higher on Steam reviews (94.3% positive) than ARK: Survival Evolved (80.8% positive).
- ARK: Survival Evolved is currently ~75% cheaper on Steam than ELDEN RING (14.99 USD vs. 59.99 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
- Both are Deck Verified.
ARK: Survival Evolved vs ELDEN RING — FAQ
- Which is better, ARK: Survival Evolved or ELDEN RING?
- On Steam reviews ELDEN RING scores higher (94.3% positive) than ARK: Survival Evolved (80.8% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, ELDEN RING is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play ARK: Survival Evolved or ELDEN RING first?
- If you want chronology, ARK: Survival Evolved (2017) came out before ELDEN RING (2022). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are ARK: Survival Evolved and ELDEN RING similar?
- They overlap on Action, RPG on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
- Do both ARK: Survival Evolved and ELDEN RING have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: ARK: Survival Evolved ships Co-op; ELDEN RING ships Online Co-op, Co-op.
- Do ARK: Survival Evolved and ELDEN RING both run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — both are Steam Deck Verified, meaning Valve confirms they run with full controller support, legible text, and default settings out of the box.