Friday, October 18th 2024
Subnautica 2 Gets Release Date and Trailer, Steam Page Teases Body Augmentation and Co-Op Gameplay
Unknown Worlds has finally announced the next sequel to its popular indie survival game franchise, Subnautica, and released a teaser trailer alongside the reveal. While details are still scant, the first trailer divulges some key information about the upcoming game. For starters, and likely the biggest divergence from Subnautica and the Subnautica: Below Zero expansion, is the addition of multiplayer gameplay, supporting teams of up to four players. For now, it looks like gameplay will either be single-player or online co-op, although it's unclear whether teams will be able to mix the two, popping into four-player sessions alone or with one or two players sitting it out.
Just judging from the trailer and Steam Store page, it looks like Subnautica 2 will take many of the same game mechanics—crafting, resource management, and an open-world sandbox—as the other games in the franchise, and build on them, instead of trying to rewrite the story. Likewise, it looks to be leaning into the Lovecraftian horror themes earlier on in the game. There also seems to be a new upgrade mechanic that will allow players to augment the biology of their characters, which should add an extra layer of depth to the game. Unknown Worlds has not yet published the full retail price for Subnautica 2 or pinned an exact release date, but it will release as an Early Access game sometime in 2025. Fans of the genre and franchise can wishlist and follow the game on Steam, Epic Games, or Xbox or join the Discord community.
The Steam page also teases that there may be grander forces at play that have thrown the planet out of balance, although information on exact gameplay and story points are still quite vague—and rightfully so, given that the game is still so far from release. It's unclear how long Unknown Worlds plans to keep Subnautica in Steam Early Access, although the original game spent nearly four years in early access before the full-fledged launch. Given the success of the original game and the subsequent pseudo-expansion—and how long Unknown Worlds has had to work on the new game already—it seems likely that Subnautica 2 will spend significantly less time in early access.
The Steam Store page for Subnautica 2 describes the game as follows:
Source:
Unknown Worlds
Just judging from the trailer and Steam Store page, it looks like Subnautica 2 will take many of the same game mechanics—crafting, resource management, and an open-world sandbox—as the other games in the franchise, and build on them, instead of trying to rewrite the story. Likewise, it looks to be leaning into the Lovecraftian horror themes earlier on in the game. There also seems to be a new upgrade mechanic that will allow players to augment the biology of their characters, which should add an extra layer of depth to the game. Unknown Worlds has not yet published the full retail price for Subnautica 2 or pinned an exact release date, but it will release as an Early Access game sometime in 2025. Fans of the genre and franchise can wishlist and follow the game on Steam, Epic Games, or Xbox or join the Discord community.
This world is too dangerous for humans to survive… Unless you change what it means to be human... As you learn more about this world, evolve your genetics to adapt your body for survival.It remains to be seen just what this means for players, but it could be an indication that the surface world in Subnautica 2 is far more hostile than the one in the original game or that players are more firmly pushed to spend more time exploring the ocean depths—perhaps players will be less reliant on their oxygen tanks for diving.
The Steam page also teases that there may be grander forces at play that have thrown the planet out of balance, although information on exact gameplay and story points are still quite vague—and rightfully so, given that the game is still so far from release. It's unclear how long Unknown Worlds plans to keep Subnautica in Steam Early Access, although the original game spent nearly four years in early access before the full-fledged launch. Given the success of the original game and the subsequent pseudo-expansion—and how long Unknown Worlds has had to work on the new game already—it seems likely that Subnautica 2 will spend significantly less time in early access.
The Steam Store page for Subnautica 2 describes the game as follows:
Immerse yourself in a new adventure with Subnautica 2, an open-water survival game from the creators of the Subnautica series. Play alone or with friends as you explore alluring biomes and discover fascinating creatures. Craft vehicles, tools, and bases to survive this mysterious alien world.Check out the Subnautica 2 teaser trailer below via YouTube:
29 Comments on Subnautica 2 Gets Release Date and Trailer, Steam Page Teases Body Augmentation and Co-Op Gameplay
An even more gorgeous sequel with more customization would be nice. I think there are hints to this direction, from some late-game content of the first game.
Sorry, but i don't do early access.That was back in December 2018, it's no longer free.
Subnautica was a genre that didn't appeal to me, or so I thought, until I started playing it. I don't think I've binge-played a game so hard in years.
One thing I will attempt to do is avoid it until at least very late into the early-access phase. I've enjoyed Satisfactory and Enshrouded early access but in both cases I wish I'd waited. Both Subnautica and Below Zero felt very finished and polished which matters a lot for this genre of game I think.
Hopefully the sequel would turn out well done, but definitely do wait.
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Very happy with this reveal, Subnautica 1 is awesome
I remember playing Subnautica 1 and didnt expect such a huge sandbox, there wasnt even a map or a compass early in. I rage quit so many times only to go back for more punishment. :D
This may be my most hyped game and I really hope it turns out well, but after Below Zero I don't know what to expect... BZ had some very disappointing changes like a protagonist that never shuts up, all the characters being mildly annoying, a lot more ground areas that are badly designed, overall less scary game, bad plot (the sister's story, the other plots were OK I think)...
Don't get me wrong, Below Zero is still a very enjoyable game because the Subnautica gameplay is still there and I have completed 3 full playthroughts because I just love Subnautica but several changes introduced were for the worse. For Subnautica 2 I just want the original game with better graphics and new biomes. Hopefully BZ was just a problematic development and they learnt from it.
Also, for the love of god, implement autosave this time.
Escape and hit save is also not an issue for the free epic game version of subnautica.
Some stuff could not be build as I wanted to.
When I build a tunnel over a damaged ship part from the game, the hole ship vanished and I could pick up all the loot. I reported that bug for years. So you do not need to move around all that damaged ship part at all.
They should put in a little effort in the building section so you can build more when it's visually possible. Deconstructing many parts because of a coding bug is not fun.
This game is probably much funnier to play on PC with mods but I played the first 2 (shouldn't this be subnautica 3? why are they ignoring Bellow Zero?) on Playstation.I didn't find it any less contrived than the first one. It was less focused on the underwater part with large parts of the game happening above ground, that was a bit weird but it was also fine, it would have been worse if it was exactly the same as the first in my opinion.