To achieve high FPS in ARK: Survival Ascended, lower most graphical settings such as volumetric clouds, shadows, reflections, and other visual effects; use commands like r.VolumetricCloud 0 and r.ShadowQuality 0; and adjust DLSS for optimized scale.

Set Launch Arguments for ARK

Boost performance by enabling all CPU cores with specific launch arguments in Steam.

prerequisites

  • Steam client installed
  • ARK: Survival Ascended purchased and installed

steps

  1. Open Steam and locate ARK: Survival Ascended in your game library.
  2. Right-click the game title, select "Properties," and navigate to the "General" tab.
  3. In the "Launch Options" field, type:
    • -USEALLAVAILABLECORES
  4. Close the properties window and launch the game for an immediate performance boost.

Steam properties page for ARK showing the launch options field set to '-USEALLAVAILABLECORES'.

The Steam properties page for ARK with the launch options field as specified. — TroubleChute

Use Essential Console Commands

Console commands enable you to disable resource-intensive visual effects for a significant FPS increase.

steps

  1. Press the Tab key to open the in-game console during gameplay.
  2. Enter commands to disable specific visuals:
    • r.VolumetricCloud 0 to turn off volumetric clouds.
    • r.VolumetricFog 0 to remove fog effects.
    • r.ShadowQuality 0 to disable shadows entirely.
    • r.WaterSingleLayerReflection 0 to reduce water reflections.
  3. To reverse changes, replace 0 with 1 for each command to re-enable the effects.
  4. Test the performance impact and adjust as needed.

Optimize Video Settings

Adjust video settings in-game to tailor graphics and resolution for your PC.

steps

  1. Open the settings menu and navigate to the "Video" tab.
  2. Match the resolution to your monitor specifications. For lower performance systems, reduce to 1080p or less.
  3. Switch to "Full Screen" mode to maximize FPS stability.
  4. Select a graphics preset that aligns with your hardware (e.g., Low, Medium, or High).
  5. Adjust resolution scaling using DLSS if available. Otherwise, manually lower the scale to improve performance.
  6. Disable secondary enhancements:
    • Turn off "Motion Blur" and "Lens Flare."
  7. Save changes and reload the map to apply optimizations effectively.

The video settings panel of a game showing resolution and graphical options.

Video settings panel with resolution and graphical presets options visible. — TroubleChute

Adjust Advanced Visual Features

Fine-tune textures and other graphical aspects for improved performance or visual quality.

before after

Before

Default Settings

  • High textures
  • General illumination at Epic
  • Foliage set to High
After

Optimized Settings

  • Textures reduced to Medium for systems with 4GB VRAM.
  • Illumination set to Medium.
  • Foliage reduced to Low for better FPS.

A settings menu displaying advanced graphical options such as textures and global illumination quality.

The advanced graphical settings menu, showcasing adjustable options for textures and global illumination quality. — TroubleChute

Enable Nvidia-Specific Features

Leverage Nvidia features like DLSS and Reflex Low Latency for additional performance gains.

steps

  1. Navigate to the RTX settings tab.
  2. Enable DLSS and select the "Quality" or "Performance" modes:
    • "Quality" for balanced visuals.
    • "Performance" for higher FPS at the cost of graphics fidelity.
  3. Activate Nvidia Reflex Low Latency for reduced input lag.
  4. Save all changes and check in-game FPS to validate improvements.

A settings screen displaying options for Nvidia features including DLSS, frame generation, super resolution, and Reflex low latency.

The settings menu shows Nvidia-specific options such as DLSS and Reflex low latency. — TroubleChute

Prepare for Optimization on Older Systems

Tips to enhance performance for users with older or less powerful hardware.

steps

  1. Drop resolution to 1080p or lower depending on hardware limitations.
  2. Use commands such as grass.enable 0 to remove non-harvestable grass and sg.FoliageQuality 0 to minimize foliage density.
  3. Turn off effects settings like shadows (r.ShadowQuality 0) and water reflections (r.WaterSingleLayerReflection 0).
  4. Disable visual flair options like light shafts and motion blur.
  5. Save settings and restart the game for full application of changes.

FAQ

FAQ

best settings for 60 FPS in ARK

To achieve 60 FPS in ARK: Survival Ascended, maximize performance by lowering visual settings such as shadows, volumetric clouds, fog, textures, and foliage density. Enable DLSS and Nvidia Reflex Low Latency if available. Set the resolution to match your monitor or reduce to 1080p for a significant FPS boost.

optimize performance on older systems with ARK

For older hardware, reduce resolution to 1080p or lower, turn off resource-intensive features like grass, shadows, and reflections using console commands, and minimize graphical settings such as textures and illumination. Save changes and reload the map to implement improvement.

Sources

Screenshots on this page are frames from the videos below, used to illustrate the steps they describe. All rights remain with their creators.

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