I love dinosaurs. Growing up, I had collected tons of dinosaur-themed items. So when I started playing Ark: Survival Evolved it felt like I was reliving part of my childhood!

DINOSAURS. DINOSAURS EVERYWHERE!

Needless to say, I kind of got a little obsessed. OK. Fine. I got A LOT obsessed.

I started collecting tons of dinosaurs. I started with Parasaurs, then moved onto Raptors, then T-Rexes and now. Spinosauruses. Our base currently has over 20 Spinosauruses.

I’ve named the ones I’ve tamed after K-pop stars because why not?

When I found out that Ark had a cooking system, I was so hyped! Obviously, I had to start making these recipes in real life. So here’s an easy Ark-inspired recipe to enjoy while you’re combing the beach slapping your “e” key for rocks!

UNIT COMPOSITION

1. salt
2. parsley
3. juice from 1 lemon
4. 4 cloves of garlic
5. 1/4 cup of olive oil
6. 1/2 cup of cucumbers, sliced
7. 1/2 cup of peas, cooked (either microwave or boil them)
8. 1/2 white onion, chopped
9. 1 avocado, sliced

BUILD ORDER

This recipe takes about 20 minutes to make. It makes about 2 servings.

OPENING

1. Place your avocado, onion and garlic in a food processor.
2. Add in the juice from one lemon.
   
3. Pulse until smooth.

MID GAME

1. Add in your cooked peas, cucumber and salt.
   
2. Pulse until combined.
3. Add in a few sprigs of parsley and your olive oil. Pulse until smooth.

LATE GAME

1. Remove your mix from the food processor.
2. Using a mesh sieve, strain out the chunky bits from your gazpacho.
3. Garnish with parsley.
4. Eat!

GG WP!

I tried to make it as close as the in-game recipe as possible:

Close… I think?

Either way, Calien Soup will keep you cool as you doodle in your dossier:

According to my dossier, I should probably collect more spinos. Hmm.

Stay safe out there, survivors!

I didn’t start playing PC games until very recently. Sure, I have a gaming resume full of obscure Asian MMORPGs, but that isn’t the core of western PC gaming. I didn’t have the thrill of experiencing Diablo or Diablo II when they first hit the shelves years and years ago. Because of this Diablo void in my life prior to May 2012, I never built up the nostalgia factor for Diablo II.

I never had a chance pour countless hours into a game only to be rewarded with a seemingly meaningless item. But, now it was my time to enjoy the grind for all of its worth. My time to figure out why so many people have figuratively chased the carrot on the stick. My time to become one of them.

But one cannot grind without proper nourishment. So, here’s a quick and simple Demon Hunter dish that can be made before your Nephalem Valor runs out.

UNIT COMPOSITION

1. salt
2. pepper
3. 1 teaspoon of olive oil
4. 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
5. basil
6. 2 heirloom tomatoes
7. 1 avocado
8. buffalo mozzarella

BUILD ORDER

Prep time will be about 15 minutes. Cook time to reduce the balsamic vinegar is about 5 minutes.

OPENING

1. Wash and slice your heirloom tomatoes into thin slices.
2. Cut your basil into thin strips.
3. Dice your avocado.
4. Roughly chop your buffalo mozzarella.

MID GAME

1. Pour 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar into a small sauce pan.
2. Place pan on medium heat.
3. Let balsamic vinegar reduce.
4. Remove and let cool.

LATE GAME

1. Now it’s time to assemble your caprese salad. Place your tomato slices on a plate.
2. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over your tomatoes.
3. Place mozzarella.
4. Place avocado on top. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
5. Sprinkle chopped basil over the salad.
6. Finish with a drizzle of reduced balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

And that’s all it takes to create this simple dish.

Now, back to item grinding. Those legendaries aren’t going to find themselves, now are they?

For what it’s worth, I’ve enjoyed my time playing Diablo III. The 200 and some odd hours spent in the realm of Sanctuary have been fun for me. Arguably, Diablo II and Diablo III are very different games. And yes, people have very strong opinions about each game — but I don’t let that bother me. The game is meant to be played, not bickered over. But, to each their own, right?

I like Diablo III and will continue to support it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a carrot on a stick to chase.