ARK: Survival Ascended has added the Enigmasaur on Xbox Series X|S, giving your tribe a creature that can become other creatures rather than merely borrow their look. Studio Wildcard’s update, dated 6 November, also brings a free Giganotosaurus overhaul and the move to Unreal Engine 5.8. Apparently, a giant dinosaur was not quite enough trouble without giving it a scorpion’s sting.
Enigmasaur finishes Fantastic Tames Season 1
The shapeshifter is the third and final addition to the paid Fantastic Tames Season 1 bundle, joining Burrowbuck and Cerberax. The Xbox Store now lists Enigmasaur as available, and you need ARK: Survival Ascended to use the add-on.
After observing nearby creatures, Enigmasaur can store a handful of their forms and transform into them. Wildcard says its disguises are convincing enough to fool members of the species it has copied, but the more interesting trick is what it keeps when it changes again.
Some learned abilities can carry across transformations. Wildcard’s example is a Rex retaining a scorpion’s sting, which rather changes the usual calculation when you spot one heading your way. This is not simply a new skin for an existing tame.
The latest patch notes list Enigmasaur spawns across The Center, Scorched Earth, Aberration, Ragnarok, Extinction, Valguero, Lost Colony and Astraeos.
Giganotosaurus gets a free overhaul
You do not need the Fantastic Tames bundle for the Giganotosaurus changes. The community-voted TLC update refreshes its model and animations, adds new attacks and replaces the standard knockout taming encounter with an Apex Challenge.
That starts with an Apex Offering crafted using Alpha trophies. Bring it near a wild Giga to begin the challenge, then survive its attacks and an enraged phase before you can finally knock it unconscious and feed it. Finding a comfortable ledge and packing a mountain of tranquillisers is no longer the whole plan.
Once tamed, the Giga has a directional Heavy Stomp or Tail Slam to knock back smaller creatures and briefly slow targets. Its Wounded Fury passive builds as its health falls, increasing damage and damage resistance, while nearby allied creatures other than Gigas receive half of its current bonuses. Keeping your tribe close has its advantages; standing in the wrong place still sounds unwise.
Unreal Engine 5.8 and Xbox fixes
Alongside the creatures, version 97 moves ARK: Survival Ascended to Unreal Engine 5.8. In the official update notes, Wildcard says the rendering changes reduce GPU workload and improve foliage and distant vistas. Those are the developer’s stated improvements, rather than a measured Xbox performance verdict.
There are specific Xbox fixes too, including flickering snow in Lost Colony. The notes also address gamepad scrolling through mod pages and a console setting issue that prevented VSync preferences from saving.
The update is live now. Enigmasaur requires the paid Fantastic Tames Season 1 content, while the Giga overhaul and engine upgrade arrive as part of the game update.
