The Ancient Shark is one of the nastiest surprises waiting for you in DAVE THE DIVER's In the Jungle DLC. You stumble into this fight after fleeing the Sea People and discovering the dinosaur trying to escape the ruins, which means you may not be fully stocked on ammo when it starts. Knowing the fight's structure before you walk in makes a significant difference.
Where does the Ancient Shark fight happen?
The encounter takes place in an enclosed room with stone pillars at the bottom. Those pillars are not just scenery. They are the entire mechanic the fight is built around, so pay attention to their positions before the boss starts moving.
What are the Ancient Shark's weak spots?
The Stethacanthus (that's the species name for this ancient shark) has large brown spots covering parts of its body. Those spots act as armor plating. Projectiles that connect with the brown armor zones deal zero damage, so firing at the wrong angle wastes ammo you can't afford to lose.
The two safe targets are the tail and the underbelly. Positioning yourself below the boss at all times is the cleanest solution. From underneath, you have a natural line of sight to the underbelly, and you sidestep the armor problem entirely.
How to dodge the Ancient Shark's attacks
The boss opens with two attacks:
- Lunge bite: The shark surges forward a short distance and tries to bite. The hitbox is narrow, so swimming above or below it as it lunges is enough to avoid the hit. Don't hover directly in front of its mouth and you'll be fine.
- Drill spin: The shark coils and launches itself across the screen in a spinning drill motion. This one hits hard and moves fast. The key is not to dodge it cleanly but to redirect it.
The drill spin is where the fight's core mechanic lives. Goad the shark into performing the drill attack aimed at one of the stone pillars. When it connects with a pillar, the boss becomes stunned. Swim over immediately and press RT (Xbox) or the equivalent on PlayStation to trigger the mounting mini-game.
How does the mounting mini-game work?
Once you're on the shark's back, move the Left Stick left or right to keep the small Dave icon balanced on the boss. Hold it there for the full duration and you'll get a prompt to press B (Xbox) or Circle (PlayStation) to stab the Ancient Shark for 200 damage. That's a massive chunk of health in a single move, so landing this consistently is the fastest path to winning.
What happens in the second phase?
After taking roughly 300 damage, the Ancient Shark retreats to the top of the room and slams into the ceiling. Stalactites drop from above, so keep moving to avoid them. This ceiling slam also knocks loose an item, usually an O2 Pouch, which you can grab to restore oxygen if you're running low.
From this point, the boss starts chaining drill attacks back-to-back. Dodge the first spin and immediately prepare for a second one coming right behind it. The strategy stays the same: redirect each drill into a surviving pillar, mount the stunned shark, and land the 200 damage stab.
A second stalactite attack triggers after another 300 or so damage, dropping another O2 Pouch. Then the shark goes back to its ramming pattern. Keep working the pillar stun loop until the boss goes down.
Ancient Shark attack and mechanic summary
What rewards do you get for beating the Ancient Shark?
After the fight, you can harvest the corpse for Stethacanthus meat. This ingredient sells for a strong price at Bancho's Grill, but the trick is managing supply at the counter. Listing only a few portions at a time ensures the dish sells out, which maximizes the revenue you pull from a single boss kill.
Sell Stethacanthus meat wisely
Getting the most out of In the Jungle
The Ancient Shark is one encounter in a DLC packed with new species and systems. If you want to fill out your lake catalog, check out the complete fish list for the In the Jungle DLC covering every Utara Lake and Lakebed Sea species by depth zone. Pairing that with the all new recipe list for Into the Jungle will help you figure out exactly which catches are worth prioritizing for Bancho's menu.
Building relationships with the local villagers also pays off. The villager favorite gifts guide covers every NPC's preferred dishes and the fastest ways to farm them, which feeds directly into your restaurant's long-term income. For everything else the DLC has to offer, the full DAVE THE DIVER guide collection has you covered.