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What PGARK is—and which ARK edition supports it
PGARK is ARK’s procedural-generation mode. Instead of loading a fixed authored island, the game creates terrain from a set of generation properties. The practical workflow is split between single-player creation and dedicated-server hosting: single-player exposes the procedural-map creator and produces the exact INI values, while the server reads those values when it starts.
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The edition distinction is decisive. Procedural map generation is documented for ARK: Survival Evolved; the ARK community wiki marks the feature as not applicable to ARK: Survival Ascended. A server running ASA cannot be converted into a PGARK server by copying ASE settings. Use the executable and configuration format for the edition you actually own and host.
| Edition | Procedural-map support | Dedicated-server executable | Map name used for this procedure |
|---|---|---|---|
| ARK: Survival Evolved | Supported | ShooterGameServer.exe |
PGARK |
| ARK: Survival Ascended | Not applicable according to the ARK community wiki | ArkAscendedServer.exe |
PGARK setup does not apply |
Before editing anything, confirm that the server is ASE and that your control panel or file access lets you edit its Game.ini. Host panels use different labels, and menu names can change between game versions, so the exact button text may not match the terms below.
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- Build a fire or shelter, then craft customizable clothing & armors to help protect against damage and extreme temperatures on your way to unlocking advanced technologies and equipment
- Chop down trees and mine metal and other precious resources to build massive multi-leveled structures composed of complex snap-linked parts
What you need before starting
- An installed copy of ARK: Survival Evolved with access to Local Game and Create Procedural Ark.
- Access to the ASE server’s
Game.ini, either through the host’s advanced configuration editor or its file manager. - A way to stop and start the dedicated server and to remove the save data associated with a procedural-map name when you intentionally want a new generation.
- The ASE server executable,
ShooterGameServer.exe, or a host panel that exposes the same map and launch-option fields.
You do not need special hardware or a purchased add-on for the generation itself. The important requirements are edition compatibility, complete configuration copying, and control of the existing save data.
Generate the procedural map in ASE single-player
- Open the local-game menu. Start ARK: Survival Evolved and choose Local Game. Do not begin by editing the dedicated server; the single-player creator is where the game exposes the procedural settings.
- Choose the procedural creator. Select Create Procedural Ark. This opens the generation settings instead of loading one of the standard authored maps.
- Tune the available settings. Adjust the procedural terrain and preset controls to the world you want. Take note of the chosen map name and every setting you intend to keep. The game writes the resulting values into the single-player configuration after the map is created.
- Start or save the generated world once. Let the local procedural map finish creating so the game has written its configuration. The dedicated server will not infer these values from your screenshots or from the menu choices; you must copy the generated INI entries.
The single-player stage is a configuration-export step as much as it is a map preview. Treat the generated settings as a package: changing one line, omitting a line, or copying only part of the terrain string can produce a different result or prevent the server from loading the map.
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Open the single-player Game.ini and locate these three keys:
PGMapNamePGTerrainPropertiesStringPGLastPreset
Copy each key together with its complete value. PGTerrainPropertiesString can span multiple lines, so selecting only the first visible line is a common cause of an incomplete configuration. Preserve the full string, its punctuation, and its line breaks exactly as the game saved them. Copying from the file is safer than retyping values from the in-game menu.
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- Capture and Tame Dinosaurs: Discover over 100 different dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures on the island, finding ways to tame them into useful additions for your tribe's dino herd
- Survive Above All: Hunger, thirst, basic safety, and protecting yourself from the weather are all part of the game
- Harvest, Hunt and Build: Cut down trees and turn them into a basic home, which you can quickly expand into a Jurassic estate. Hunt for meat, scavenge for plants (or start your own garden!)
- Customize Everything: An extensive crafting system invites you to mix and match materials scavenged from the island, while also modifying the colors, textures, shapes, and styles
- Explore the Island: Solve the mystery of The ARK as you explore this massive island, discovering Explorer's Notebooks (filled with clues!) throughout
The three entries serve different roles. PGMapName identifies the procedural world and the save data associated with it. PGTerrainPropertiesString contains the terrain-generation properties, including the MapSeed field. PGLastPreset records the last procedural preset selected by the game. The server needs all three values from the same single-player generation.
Put the settings in the dedicated server
- Stop the server. Do not edit a live configuration while the process is running. A running instance may overwrite changes during shutdown or continue using values already loaded in memory.
- Open the server’s Game.ini. If the host offers a basic and an advanced configuration view, switch to Advanced Mode so the raw INI entries can be entered.
- Paste the three lines. Add the complete
PGMapName,PGTerrainPropertiesString, andPGLastPresetentries to the server’sGame.ini. Keep the multiline terrain value intact; do not wrap it manually or replace it with a shortened version. - Save the file and verify it. Reopen the editor after saving and check that all three keys remain present. Some control panels normalize line breaks or reject malformed text, so this check catches a truncated terrain string before launch.
If the server already contains a world using that PGMapName, the copied settings alone do not rebuild it. The next section explains why the save-state decision must be made before you launch.
Decide whether to reuse or regenerate the map
Keep the existing procedural world
Leave the existing save data in place when you want the established world and its player progress. Changing the INI does not retroactively alter a map that has already been saved. The server will continue loading the existing world associated with that procedural map name.
Generate a new world with the same server
To force a fresh generation, delete the save data associated with that PGMapName before starting the server again. The exact file-management path depends on your host, so use its save-data browser or file manager and remove only the procedural-map save you intend to replace. Deleting the wrong save destroys progress; back up anything you may need before removal.
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- Capture and Tame Dinosaurs: Discover over 100 different dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures on the island, finding ways to tame them into useful additions for your tribe's dino herd
- Survive Above All: Hunger, thirst, basic safety and protecting yourself from the weather are all part of the game. Run too far and not only will you be exhausted, but you will also quickly get hungry and thirsty. Weather effects are based on real-world climates, and so you'll need to hide out from rain and snow, while making the most of sunny days
- Harvest, Hunt and Build: Cut down trees and turn them into a basic home, which you can quickly expand into a Jurassic estate. Hunt for meat, scavenge for plants (or start your own garden!)
- Gather Resources, Customize Everything: An extensive crafting system invites you to mix and match materials scavenged from the island, while also modifying the colors, textures, shapes and style of everything from the walls of your home, to your character's armor, weapons and more
- Explore the Island: Solve the mystery of The ARK as you explore this massive island, discovering Explorer's Notebooks (filled with clues!) throughout. Make your way to the final boss and figure out why you've been dropped into this Jurassic-era experience
Use a new PGMapName instead
A safer way to keep the old world available is to give the new configuration a different PGMapName. The new name separates the regenerated map’s save data from the old world, allowing you to switch back by restoring the previous configuration and save.
Changing the terrain settings while retaining the old map name is not a regeneration command. The name and save state must be treated together: same name plus existing data means the existing world is loaded; a removed save or a new name permits a new world to be created.
Launch the server with PGARK
Start the ASE dedicated server with PGARK as the map name. In the executable form, the map name comes immediately after the executable, and launch options follow a question mark:
ShooterGameServer.exe PGARK?listenThe order matters. PGARK identifies the map mode; listen is an option following the question mark. Do not put an option before the map name, and do not substitute ArkAscendedServer.exe for the ASE executable in this procedure. A hosting panel may split these fields into a map selector and an options box, but the resulting command still needs the same map-first structure.
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- Capture and Tame Dinosaurs: Discover over 100 different dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures on the island, finding ways to tame them into useful additions for your tribe's dino herd
- Survive Above All: Hunger, thirst, basic safety, and protecting yourself from the weather are all part of the game
- Harvest, Hunt and Build: Cut down trees and turn them into a basic home, which you can quickly expand into a Jurassic estate. Hunt for meat, scavenge for plants (or start your own garden!)
- Customize Everything: An extensive crafting system invites you to mix and match materials scavenged from the island, while also modifying the colors, textures, shapes, and styles
- Explore the Island: Solve the mystery of The ARK as you explore this massive island, discovering Explorer's Notebooks (filled with clues!) throughout
If you use additional launch options supplied by your host, append them after the question mark in the panel’s normal syntax. The essential PGARK requirement is that the map name is PGARK and that the server reads the copied INI entries for the same ASE installation.
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How seeds and map identity work
The terrain string contains a MapSeed value. Community reports state that reusing the same seed reproduces the same map, but this claim is low-confidence and is not backed by an official Studio Wildcard PGARK guide. Treat the seed as part of the configuration you preserve, not as a guaranteed cross-version reproducibility promise.
A forum post suggested a seed range from 1 to 999, but that range is unverified. There is no established basis here for promising that every integer in that interval is valid or that values outside it fail. If you experiment with seeds, record the complete terrain string and the game version alongside each result so that you can restore a known configuration.
Even when you intend to reuse a seed, keep the entire PGTerrainPropertiesString, PGMapName, and PGLastPreset set together. A seed copied without the rest of the generated properties is not a complete server configuration.
Troubleshoot the most common failures
The server loads a normal map or fails before world creation
- Confirm that the server is ASE and that the process is
ShooterGameServer.exe. - Check that the launch map is exactly
PGARKand appears before the question mark. - Verify that the host did not place
PGARKin a generic options field while leaving a different map selected elsewhere. - Reopen
Game.iniand confirm that all three procedural keys are present.
The server ignores new terrain settings
- Check whether save data for the current
PGMapNamealready exists. Existing data takes precedence over a changed INI for map regeneration. - For a new world, remove that map’s save data or change
PGMapNamebefore restarting. - Stop the server fully, save the INI, and then start it again so the process reads the updated file.
The terrain string appears incomplete
- Compare the server entry with the single-player entry character for character.
- Make sure every line belonging to
PGTerrainPropertiesStringwas copied; the value may span multiple lines. - Use the host’s advanced/raw editor rather than a simplified form that may truncate long values.
You tried to configure ASA
PGARK procedural generation is not applicable to ASA. ASA uses ArkAscendedServer.exe, while this workflow requires ASE’s ShooterGameServer.exe. Installing the ASE-style keys in an ASA configuration will not add the feature.
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The same seed does not produce the expected result
The same-seed reproducibility claim is reported with low confidence, so do not assume that a seed alone guarantees an identical world across game versions or altered settings. Recheck the complete terrain string, preset, map name, and save state. If the old world is still present, the server may be loading it rather than generating anything new.
A repeatable change-management routine
Procedural maps are easier to maintain when each generation is recorded as a small configuration snapshot. For every world you create, keep a copy of the three INI entries together, note the PGMapName, and record whether the corresponding save data is currently active. This gives you a reversible path when testing a new terrain setup.
- Stop the server and back up the current procedural save and its three INI entries.
- Create or adjust the map in ASE single-player through Local Game and Create Procedural Ark.
- Copy the newly generated values, including the full multiline terrain string.
- Choose a new
PGMapNameif you need to preserve the old world. - Paste the values into the server’s advanced
Game.inieditor and verify them after saving. - Launch with
ShooterGameServer.exe PGARK?listenand allow the server to create or load the selected world.
This routine separates configuration changes from save-data changes. That distinction is the key to avoiding an accidental overwrite and to understanding why an apparently correct INI edit can appear to do nothing.
Pre-launch checklist
- Edition confirmed as ARK: Survival Evolved.
- Executable confirmed as
ShooterGameServer.exe. - Single-player map created through Local Game → Create Procedural Ark.
PGMapName, completePGTerrainPropertiesString, andPGLastPresetcopied from the same generation.- Multiline terrain value preserved without truncation.
- Decision made to retain the existing save, delete it for regeneration, or use a new
PGMapName. - Launch command or panel fields resolve to
PGARKas the map name before the question mark.
Limitations and version caveats
There is no official Studio Wildcard PGARK setup guide establishing every menu label, INI behavior, or seed rule. Much of the available procedural-server detail comes from hosting guides and community forums, some of which are informal or undated. Game updates and host control panels can therefore change the exact location of Game.ini, the appearance of the advanced editor, or the wording of the single-player menus. When a label differs, follow the underlying sequence: generate in ASE single-player, export the three generated keys, place them in the ASE server’s Game.ini, and launch PGARK first in the command.
The durable parts of the procedure are the edition restriction, the three-key configuration transfer, the map-first launch syntax, and the save-data rule. Treat seed ranges and cross-version reproduction as experiments rather than guarantees.
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