Help to setup a game for me and my wife

[erdmann79]

Hi,

I have been fighting what seems like an unfair fight, to try to set up a game where my wife and I can play Ark together.

A bit of info:

• We have 2 PS4 each with their own copy of Ark and PS+
• We do not want to play with other people
• We prefer not to be limited in distance we can go away from each other. Not a need to have but a nice to have
• We don´t mind paying for an external server if required.

 

Can anyone please describe step by step how we get a stage where we can play Ark together?

Thanks in advance

Lasse

 

[larryday]

To set up a private game in Ark for you and your wife to play together on your PS4 consoles, make sure you both have PlayStation Plus subscriptions and the game installed. One of you will host the game by selecting "Host/Local" and customizing the settings. Save the game to create a local server. The other person can then join the game by selecting "Join ARK" and connecting to the hosted game.

If you want to roam freely without distance limitations, you can either use split-screen mode on one console or rent a private server from a hosting provider to play on separate consoles. Renting a server involves additional costs, but it allows you to have your own customized Ark world. Choose a reliable hosting provider, rent a server, and follow their instructions to connect your consoles to the server. Enjoy playing Ark together!

Edited July 22, 2023 by larryday

[VenatrixPulchra]

+1 to what was said above. Renting a private server is 100% worth the money. No distance limit (Sooo disruptive for player 2 when this happens) and you get better control od the settings.

[CervantesMor]

23 hours ago, larryday said:

If you want to roam freely without distance limitations, you can either use split-screen mode on one console 

...hmmm this is not correct because playing in Split Screen you will have the limitation of the distance between the characters; this also applies to "Not-Dedicated" private player servers, when you host a session anyone who joins (max 8 players at the same time, but an access password can be set to prevent outsiders from entering) will be limited to the distance of the host player and, from take into consideration, the game will be saved only on the Console of the host that started the Server, if the host disconnects (disconnecting the Server) no one will be able to access because the Server is not running, the same applies if you want to transfer from map can only be done if the host is relocating. 

So on the Console the best way to play privately without distance limitation is to rent a Server, this also allows other people to access always as the Server will remain functional even when no one has logged in to it , in the rental Servers the settings can be customized at will and here too an access password can be set to avoid strangers, furthermore more than one map can be rented at the same time (with additional costs for each additional map) by creating a "Cluster" where anyone can choose to freely move to each map whenever they want.

 So if "paying monthly" is not a problem then the rental is the most complete and customizable option.

 

PS: there are also "Dedicated" Servers but I don't have good knowledge of these Servers, when a few years ago I looked for the solution to play freely with a dear friend, this option was the first one I had discarded   [[[ edit: why is it necessary for a device to be used as a Server, as better explained by Pipinghot below ]]], we finally got opted for Official Legacy Servers (no limitations, full maps, vanilla settings). I hope someone here can add the right information about it.

-----

 

Edited July 12, 2023 by CervantesMor
I corrected the nomenclature of "Dedicated" and "Not-Dedicated" Servers that I had mistakenly reversed, thanks to Pipinghot for clarifying this and I refer you to his Post below for a better explanation about it.

[Pipinghot]

10 hours ago, CervantesMor said:

this also applies to "dedicated" private servers, when you host a session anyone who joins (max 8 players at the same time, but an access password can be set to prevent outsiders from entering)

Just to make sure we're all using the same lingo - that is a non-dedicated private server.

When you use local/host and invite people to join you, that is non-dedicated. If a server shuts down when the hosting player logs off, that is a non-dedicated server.

A dedicated server is when you run the server as a separate program that people can log into and out of, and it does not require one of the players to be hosting it. Even if the person who owns the server logs off it doesn't change anything, everyone else can still log in whenever they want. The only way to shut down a dedicated server is to deliberately turn it off or issue a shut down command. It will run the server program unless you tell it to stop, this is what makes it "dedicated".

 

3 types of dedicated server:

1) You rent a server from a hosting company (this most common type).

2) You use an extra computer in your house to run the server program.

3) You use a single computer that runs both game-client and the server as two separate programs. The player who owns the computer still has to use their game-client to log into the server, and when they log off and shut down their game client the server continues running. (I don't know anyone who does this for ARK, the game is too much of a resource hog, but technically it's possible and I've done it with other games).

[Pipinghot]

23 hours ago, erdmann79 said:

• We prefer not to be limited in distance we can go away from each other. Not a need to have but a nice to have
• We don´t mind paying for an external server if required.

As the others said, you will want to rent a server from a hosting service. Or, if you have an extra PC around your house, you can install a copy of the server program and run your own dedicated server. This requires a lot more technical know-how and some more time, but if you've already paid for the hardware and are decent with computers this is a cost efficient option.

[CervantesMor]

1 hour ago, Pipinghot said:

Just to make sure we're all using the same lingo - that is a non-dedicated private server.

When you use local/host and invite people to join you, that is non-dedicated. If a server shuts down when the hosting player logs off, that is a non-dedicated server.

A dedicated server is when you run the server as a separate program that people can log into and out of, and it does not require one of the players to be hosting it. Even if the person who owns the server logs off it doesn't change anything, everyone else can still log in whenever they want. The only way to shut down a dedicated server is to deliberately turn it off or issue a shut down command. It will run the server program unless you tell it to stop, this is what makes it "dedicated".

 

3 types of dedicated server:

1) You rent a server from a hosting company (this most common type).

2) You use an extra computer in your house to run the server program.

3) You use a single computer that runs both game-client and the server as two separate programs. The player who owns the computer still has to use their game-client to log into the server, and when they log off and shut down their game client the server continues running. (I don't know anyone who does this for ARK, the game is too much of a resource hog, but technically it's possible and I've done it with other games).

Exactly the clarification needed, and I've edited my previous post to correct the Server nomenclature (Pipinghot please re-read my post above to verify I've corrected it correctly).

In this regard, I have a doubt to resolve: if I "host a non-dedicated session" via host/local from my XBox (or from PS or PC), this will have to remain on/connected to the internet to allow others access, right? but if I disconnect the device from the internet then the Server will also be stopped and therefore no one will be able to access it, right? but (my doubt) if I keep the internet connection active but I turn off my XBox, does the Server remain active or not? (I could not verify it myself when I needed it).

 

Bonus question: if from host/local I "host a non-dedicated session" and set "Private game" who can access? friends? or only if I send an invite?

[Joebl0w13]

I'm with these guys here. After having run my own private servers, there's been no looking back. 

The total control of nearly every game function is well worth it.

[CervantesMor]

last minute info

I'm right now in the "host Dedicated Server" screen and I just discovered that to start it it is also NECESSARY to have the NAT Open otherwise a "warning" about it will appear.

 

PS: The funny thing is that I have NAT Open but this warning continues to appear, and if I run the NatTest immediately after the attempt it confirms that at this moment the Nat is Moderated but if I run the test again after a few seconds it goes back to be Open (even if I continue to rerun the Test it confirms me Open), then I try again to start the session and the Nat warning appears again, so I immediately rerun the NatTest and the first response is Moderate Nat, I repeat the Test and here again Nat Open, I repeat and repeat and repeat remains Open until I try everything again with the exact same results ...don't ask me why and I won't ask either

Edited July 12, 2023 by CervantesMor

[Pipinghot]

47 minutes ago, CervantesMor said:

In this regard, I have a doubt to resolve: if I "host a non-dedicated session" via host/local from my XBox (or from PS or PC), this will have to remain on/connected to the internet to allow others access, right?

Yes, correct. ARK is not capable of running only inside of a local network (LAN), the server and all of the clients must have an internet connection even if they're all inside the same location (house).

47 minutes ago, CervantesMor said:

but if I disconnect the device from the internet then the Server will also be stopped and therefore no one will be able to access it, right?

 Well, technically your host/server will still be running on your Xbox (or PS or PC) but they will get disconnected from you. If you disconnect the host/server device from the internet it won't matter that it's still running. No one can connect to your "host a non-dedicated session" because the game you are hosting must have an internet connection at all times for it to work. Even if all of the players are inside your building, all on the same local network, they will not be able to connect to the hosted session if the machine that is hosting the game does not have a live internet connection.

Even if they logged in first, I'm 99% certain that everyone would get disconnected from the non-dedicated server that you're hosting at the moment you disconnect from the internet.

47 minutes ago, CervantesMor said:

but (my doubt) if I keep the internet connection active but I turn off my XBox, does the Server remain active or not? (I could not verify it myself when I needed it).

It does not. The server shuts down when you turn off your Xbox because your Xbox is where the server is running.

In order for you to host a non-dedicated session you need three things:

1) Your machine has to be turned on.

2) Your machine has to maintain a connection to the internet.

3) Your machine has to keep running ARK the whole time. You could have your character sitting in a chair, or even allow your character to die without respawning, but the game has to keep running on your machine in order to allow people to log in to it.

 

Another way to help think of this is:

1) When you run a non-dedicated server you are doing two things at once - you are playing the game on your character and you are the host allowing people to visit your game. If you stop doing either one of those things then your non-dedicated server disappears for other people. If you lose internet, if you log off, or if your Xbox shuts down then everyone else gets disconnected. You non-dedicated server requires you to actively be running the game with your character logged in.

2) When you run a dedicated server, no one has to be logged in for the server to keep running. As long as the dedicated server is running the server program and is connected to the internet then all of your can log in or log out whenever you want to. This is what the Official servers are, they're all dedicated servers. Even then there are 0/70 players logged in the servers keep running and the game world stays live all the time.

This is the advantage of dedicated servers, the world on that server stays alive and keeps moving forward even when no one is logged in.

47 minutes ago, CervantesMor said:

Bonus question: if from host/local I "host a non-dedicated session" and set "Private game" who can access? friends? or only if I send an invite?

If you check Private that means your non-dedicated session will be invisible for the search system that's build into the game. It will not show up on any of the options in the selection menu.

The only way people can find your server (and this is true for both non-dedicated and for dedicated servers) would be if you give them the IP address and port number for them to find your server.

This is intended to be an extra layer of security, in addition to creating a Session Name and Password.

[CervantesMor]

Ok thank you and I think this has expanded the useful information to the OP as well.

 

Regarding my bonus question about setting up a Private Server (which you made clear to me perfectly) I ask two more info: is it possible to allow access to the Server by Invite (instead of providing IP and Port)? and even if it may seem like a trivial question but at least let's complete the picture: having IP/Port or invitation if possible, can I put that Server in Favorites for a quick view and not to re-enter that data to find it?

[Pipinghot]

5 hours ago, CervantesMor said:

is it possible to allow access to the Server by Invite (instead of providing IP and Port)?

I don't know, have never tried it.

5 hours ago, CervantesMor said:

having IP/Port or invitation if possible, can I put that Server in Favorites for a quick view and not to re-enter that data to find it?

I don't know that one either.