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Best ARK: Survival Ascended settings for the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super (2026)

On a NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super (paired with a balanced Intel Core i5-13500H (laptop)-class CPU), ARK: Survival Ascended runs at roughly 72 FPS at 1080p with our optimized settings — up from about 54FPS with everything maxed. Here's the configuration and what each setting costs.

The NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super is a mainstream 1080p graphics card with 8GB of VRAM, and ARK: Survival Ascended is a one of the most punishing games to run on PC. Paired with the Intel Core i5-13500H (laptop), it runs well at 1080p — about 72 FPS with FrameCoach's optimized settings, a clear jump from roughly 54 FPS with everything on High.

Across resolutions you can expect around 72 FPS at 1080p and 63 FPS at 1440p, dropping to roughly 50 FPS at 4K. With only 8GB of VRAM, keep textures a notch below max in ARK: Survival Ascended at higher resolutions to avoid stutter. The biggest free win is DLSS upscaling — set it to Quality for a large FPS boost at little visual cost.

ResolutionAll-High FPSOptimized FPS
1080p5472
1440p3263
4K1850
💡 ARK: Survival Ascended: One of the most demanding games made - lower Foliage and Lumen first; upscaling is required.
🚀 Biggest free win: enable DLSS (Quality) — about +35% FPS for a small sharpness trade.
Recommended settings
Upscaling — DLSSQuality+35% FPS
ARK: Survival Ascended (Unreal Engine 5) supports DLSS, FSR and XeSS plus Frame Generation. Practically required - this is one of the most demanding survival games made.
Texture QualityEpic-1% FPS
Surface sharpness - VRAM-hungry. Medium/High on 8GB cards to avoid stutter.
Global Illumination (Lumen)Mediumbaseline
Software Lumen bounce lighting - the single heaviest setting. Medium/High is the realistic pick; Epic is brutal.
Foliage QualityMediumbaseline
The dense jungle foliage - a massive cost given how much covers the island. Lowering it is one of the biggest FPS wins.
Shadow QualityMediumbaseline
Shadow resolution and range. Medium/High is standard for playable frames.
Effects QualityMediumbaseline
Water, weather and combat effects. Lowering smooths busy bases and raids.
View DistanceMediumbaseline
How far the island renders - a real cost given the long sightlines. Medium/High is sensible.
Post ProcessingMediumbaseline
Bloom and depth of field. Cheap; set to taste.
Anti-AliasingMediumbaseline
Edge smoothing. Medium keeps the image clean cheaply.

⚡ Fine-tune this for your exact CPU & target FPS →

🎯 Can the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super run ARK: Survival Ascended? See the verdict →

ARK: Survival Ascended on other GPUs
Other games on the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super
Frequently asked

What FPS does the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super get in ARK: Survival Ascended?

With FrameCoach's optimized balanced settings, the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super averages around 72 FPS at 1080p in ARK: Survival Ascended — up from about 54 FPS with everything on High.

Can the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super run ARK: Survival Ascended at 1440p?

At 1440p with optimized settings, the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super averages roughly 63 FPS in ARK: Survival Ascended — a smooth experience.

What are the best ARK: Survival Ascended settings for the NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super?

Turn on DLSS (Quality), keep ray tracing off for maximum FPS, and ease the heaviest options like Global Illumination (Lumen) and Foliage Quality down a notch. The full per-setting breakdown is above.

FPS figures are estimates from a generalized model (hardware tier × game load × per-setting weights), not live benchmarks — real performance varies by scene, drivers and game version.