ARK Server Settings Explained: GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini
ARK reads its server settings from two files. GameUserSettings.ini holds most of what admins touch day to day (rates, PvE or PvP, difficulty, decay, passwords) under the [ServerSettings] header. Game.ini holds the more advanced overrides, such as breeding and maturation speeds, under [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode].
This guide covers ARK: Survival Evolved (ASE), which is what our hosting page offers. Key names below were checked against the community-maintained ARK Wiki and several host knowledgebases on 2026-11-01. ARK: Survival Ascended (ASA) shares many keys but is a separate game, and the places it differs are called out.
- Rates (
TamingSpeedMultiplier,HarvestAmountMultiplier,XPMultiplier),ServerPVE, difficulty and day length go inGameUserSettings.iniunder[ServerSettings]. - Breeding speeds (
MatingIntervalMultiplier,EggHatchSpeedMultiplier,BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier) go inGame.iniunder[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]. - Set
OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0for wild creatures up to level 150; it takes precedence overDifficultyOffset. - Stop the server before editing. ARK rewrites both files on shutdown and will overwrite changes made while it runs.
On this page
- Where the two files live and how to edit them safely
- GameUserSettings.ini: the [ServerSettings] keys most admins change
- Max players: not under [ServerSettings]
- How difficulty and wild creature levels actually work
- Game.ini: breeding, per-stat and per-resource overrides
- Day length, decay and other things people ask about
- Frequently asked questions
- References
Where the two files live and how to edit them safely
On a dedicated server both files sit in the same folder: ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/ on Windows or ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/ on Linux. Game.ini is empty by default, so you create the section yourself.
Three rules prevent most “my setting does nothing” problems:
- Stop the server first. ARK writes its in-memory settings back to the files on shutdown, which wipes edits made while it was running.
- Put each key under the right header. A rate pasted into
Game.inior a breeding key pasted intoGameUserSettings.iniis simply ignored. - Use one line per key. A duplicate further down the file can override the line you just edited. Search the whole file before adding a key.
A launch option written as ?Key=Value on the command line can also override the file, and some panels expose their own startup fields that take priority over the ini. If an edit has no effect, check the launch line before assuming the key is wrong.
GameUserSettings.ini: the [ServerSettings] keys most admins change
All of these go under [ServerSettings]. Defaults come from the ARK Wiki's server configuration page; the three rate multipliers are 1.0 on a vanilla setup.
| Key | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
TamingSpeedMultiplier | Higher means taming finishes faster. | 1.0 |
HarvestAmountMultiplier | Scales yields from all harvesting (trees, rocks, carcasses). | 1.0 |
XPMultiplier | Global XP rate for players, tribes and tames. | 1.0 |
ServerPVE | True for PvE, False for PvP. | False |
OverrideOfficialDifficulty | Sets the difficulty directly. 5.0 allows common wild creatures up to level 150. | 0.0 (off) |
DifficultyOffset | Scales difficulty per map; only used if no override is set. | 1.0 |
DayCycleSpeedScale | Speed of the whole day/night cycle. | 1.0 |
DayTimeSpeedScale / NightTimeSpeedScale | Length of daytime or nighttime relative to the other. | 1.0 |
DisableStructureDecayPvE | True turns off gradual auto-decay of player structures. | False |
PvEStructureDecayPeriodMultiplier | Scales structure decay timers (also applies in PvP when decay is enabled). | 1.0 |
MaxTamedDinos | Global cap on tamed creatures on the server. | 5000 |
ItemStackSizeMultiplier | Scales default stack sizes (items that stack to 1 are excluded). | 1.0 |
AllowThirdPersonPlayer | False disables the third-person camera. | True |
RCONEnabled / RCONPort | Enables RCON; also needs ServerAdminPassword. | False / 27020 |
[ServerSettings]
ServerPVE=False
TamingSpeedMultiplier=3.0
HarvestAmountMultiplier=2.0
XPMultiplier=2.0
OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0
DisableStructureDecayPvE=False
ServerPassword=
ServerAdminPassword=ChangeThisMax players: not under [ServerSettings]
In ARK: Survival Evolved the player cap is read from a different header in GameUserSettings.ini:
[/Script/Engine.GameSession]
MaxPlayers=70The ARK Wiki also documents a -WinLiveMaxPlayers launch option (default 70) and says it currently replaces the ini value; it is listed as an ASA option. So: on ASE use the [/Script/Engine.GameSession] key, and on ASA set the cap with the launch option. If the number of slots does not change after a restart, check both places.
How difficulty and wild creature levels actually work
Difficulty is the most misunderstood setting. The wiki's difficulty page describes the order the server checks:
MaxDifficulty=Trueforces difficulty 5.0 and ignores everything else.OverrideOfficialDifficultysets the difficulty directly, with no per-map variation.DifficultyOffsetis used only if neither of the above is set. It feeds the formulaDifficultyOffset x (map difficulty - 0.5) + 0.5, where the map difficulty is 4.0 on maps such as The Island and 5.0 on others.
Most wild creatures spawn across 30 level steps, and each step equals the difficulty value. At 5.0 that is five levels per step, so the highest common wild level is 30 x 5.0 = 150. At 4.0 it is 120. Because the offset formula depends on the map, most admins set OverrideOfficialDifficulty and leave DifficultyOffset alone.
Game.ini: breeding, per-stat and per-resource overrides
Put these under [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode] in Game.ini. Each defaults to 1.0.
| Key | Effect |
|---|---|
MatingIntervalMultiplier | Lower values let creatures breed again sooner. |
EggHatchSpeedMultiplier | Higher values hatch eggs faster. |
BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier | Higher values make babies grow up faster. |
The same section also takes list-style overrides for people who want finer control. The wiki documents PerLevelStatsMultiplier (stats), TamedDinoClassSpeedMultipliers (per-creature speed), and HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers (per-resource harvest yields). These use long, structured values, so copy the exact format from the wiki rather than typing from memory.
Day length, decay and other things people ask about
- Day/night:
DayCycleSpeedScalescales the whole cycle; the wiki notes a value around 0.035 gives roughly a 24-hour day. UseDayTimeSpeedScaleandNightTimeSpeedScaleto shorten the dark. - Structure decay: in PvE,
DisableStructureDecayPvE=Truestops decay entirely. To keep decay but slow it, raisePvEStructureDecayPeriodMultiplier.PvPStructureDecay(default False) enables decay on PvP. - Autosave:
AutoSavePeriodMinutesdefaults to 15. - RCON: set
RCONEnabled=True,RCONPortandServerAdminPasswordtogether; RCON needs all three.
Hosting with ChicagoServers? The ARK Survival Evolved server hosting page lists what is included, such as free server backups and SFTP file access. Free backups mean a bad edit is a one-minute rollback.
Frequently asked questions
Why do my ARK server settings reset after I restart?
ARK rewrites GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini when the server shuts down, so edits made while it is running are overwritten. Stop the server, edit the files, then start it again. Also check for a duplicate key lower in the file or a launch-line value that overrides it.
Which file does TamingSpeedMultiplier go in?
GameUserSettings.ini, under the [ServerSettings] header. Breeding keys such as MatingIntervalMultiplier and EggHatchSpeedMultiplier go in Game.ini instead.
How do I get level 150 wild dinos on my ARK server?
Set OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0 in the [ServerSettings] section of GameUserSettings.ini. Most wild creatures then spawn in 30 steps of 5 levels, for a maximum of level 150.
Do these settings work on ARK: Survival Ascended?
Many keys are shared, but ASA is a separate game with its own launch options. For example, ASA sets the player cap with -WinLiveMaxPlayers and uses -mods instead of Steam Workshop ActiveMods. Check an ASA-specific reference before copying an ASE config over.