How to Get Food and Water in Ark: Survival Evolved

Never go thirsty or hungry again with our guide to finding food and water in Ark: Survival Evolved.

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Taming and befriending dinosaurs is a noble goal, but if you don't know how to find food and water in Ark: Survival Evolved, you'll end up being someone (or something) else's lunch. Not only do you need food and water to stay alive, taming dinos requires you to gather all sorts of food to attract the attention of herbivores and carnivores alike. Trust our guide to help you locate food and water in Ark: Survival Evolved.

Getting Food and Water: Berries

You'll never be more desperate to gather resources in Ark: Survival Evolved than you will be at the beginning of the game, when your food and water meters seem to drain faster than water through a sieve. By exercising ingenuity and rationing resources until you've got a surfeit, you can graduate from wolfing down berries to cooking dinosaur meet over a campfire in record time.

Berries, as mentioned, form the bottom of Ark's food chain. That's okay, though, because berries can be found almost anywhere, which means you should be able to grab some when you're in dire straits. Look for berries on bushes, but be careful to avoid certain types. Narcoberries and stimberries cause adverse effects. Go ahead and pick them, but save them for dinosaurs when the time comes to tame them.

Bear in mind, also, that you'll need lots of berries to feel full. Gather more than you need so you'll have leftovers after you finish eating.

Getting Food and Water: Meat

As you work your way through the early stages of Ark: Survival Evolved, you'll gather supplies to craft a spear. Crafts several so you can throw them at opponents. You won't want to get too close to dinosaurs until you're better equipped to survive their attacks.

With spears in hand, go hunting for meat. Look for smaller dinosaurs first. Spears are good hunting tools, but don't do much damage against larger prey. Try finding a Dodo dinosaur. They'll fight back instead of run away, saving you the effort of having to track them down. Even though they fight, they inflict minimal damage, so you should be able to survive counterattacks while you're still getting the hang of using spears. Just remember to stay on the move as you attack. A moving target is harder to hit; that's as true as dinosaurs as it is for you.

Getting Food and Water: Water

Water is almost as easy to locate in Ark: Survival Evolved as berries. Simply walk up to any water supply and press the Use button on your controller or key on your keyboard. You'll fill up water containers so that you'll have plenty to drink for later.

In need of more survival tips? Check out the rest of our Ark: Survival Evolved guides such as how to play single-player and how to tame dinosaurs.

Long Reads Editor

David L. Craddock writes fiction, nonfiction, and grocery lists. He is the author of the Stay Awhile and Listen series, and the Gairden Chronicles series of fantasy novels for young adults. Outside of writing, he enjoys playing Mario, Zelda, and Dark Souls games, and will be happy to discuss at length the myriad reasons why Dark Souls 2 is the best in the series. Follow him online at davidlcraddock.com and @davidlcraddock.

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