Ark: Survival Evolved tournament turns this dinosaur-infested survival game into an esport

Many esport competitions are centered on killing as many of your opponents as possible. In Ark: Survival of the Fittest, that idea is flipped on its head. Victory, and all the prize money, goes to those people who can stay alive while their weaker competitors die in the wilderness.

On September 2, Developer Studio Wildcard is holding the finals of the first tournament for the still-in-development Ark: Survival Evolved. The 4.5 hour event will be streamed on Twitch starting at 11 a.m. Pacific. It has 144 competitors taking part in the foray, and each is a member of a four-person team of potential survivors. An esports tournament is hardly news on its own. What makes this competition noteworthy is the genre players are striving to conquer.