Subnautica Review - The sea is a pleasure to explore

In this game age, Early Access games are the most normal thing in the world. Which means that a title before an entire release has been able to develop an active community for years. This is because it can show what it has in store at an early stage, and then add the necessary finish and quality to the final product. PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Hello Neighbor are two very recent examples of this and now there is Unknown Worlds' Subnautica: a game that appeared in Early Access at the end of 2014, but only now comes to the surface as a finished title to literally dive into.

Unlike the community of the game we started without sub- knowledge and without knowing what to do Subnautica. It also seems that Unknown World has forgotten that many players are in the same boat as us. For newcomers, the first half hour therefore consists of the necessary sparring while they wonder what they should do. While players who have played the game from the beginning of the Early Access period will feel like a fish in the water.

The setup is as follows: you are part of the crew of a gigantic spaceship, Aurora. This crashes towards an alien planet, where the opening scene does not waste time, where you become unconscious while you escape into your escape capsule. You wake up, extinguish some fires with a fire extinguisher and open the capsule to find out that you have landed next to the burning wreck of the ship. Moreover, the entire planet seems to be one gigantic ocean.

This introduction throws you into the deep, as mentioned earlier, without any explanation what to do - apart from an explanation of how to use the objects that you hold. Because of this, you basically have to try something out and look around. Within the first hour, however, the basic principles slowly become clear: collect tools; use your 'fabricator' (a kind of workbench) to make your equipment; discover more and further by using this equipment, and so on.

Of course, like in all other 'sandbox' games like this, you start with a few measly possibilities. These are made from standard materials and require little effort to get, such as your insignificant standard oxygen tank and some poor flippers. These options, however, extend because you find more blueprints plus resources and continue to explore the sea deeper and deeper. It is therefore impossible from the start to immediately build everything. You have to discover new building schemes to create new objects. This is done by scanning fragments from the Aurora, such as vehicle parts or broken equipment, that you find at the bottom of the sea.

We will not discuss everything you can unlock, but your shabby flippers are soon replaced by a motorized Seaglide; then a submarine called the Seamoth, and so on. What we could really appreciate about this is that you rarely have no idea what the next is to build, because there is always something you can work towards. Once you have the blueprints, you only have to find the 'ingredients' and issue them.

This progress is also helped by small pieces of story that pop up occasionally. As in other sandbox games as Minecraft , there is a kind of ending (like the Ender Dragon), but the emphasis is mainly on survival and exploration. The narrative elements serve only as starting points that refer to distant places to discover more cool and intriguing things. If you are not yet behind: your goal is to leave this new strange planet again. Shortly after you land and repair your radio, you receive messages from other escape capsules and potential rescuers who provide you with information that will help you unravel more of the story.

The comparison with Minecraft may not be fair. Where the story is certainly not the most important, that is exploring and the open sea, the mystery remains very interesting and we could enjoy a lot of surprises that came by. Especially the later parts in the game were impressive. We do not give away, but the escape of this water wonderland is not as simple as it seems.

At the beginning of the game there are a variety of difficulty settings to choose, depending on your preference. You can make the survival adventure as difficult as you want. For example, if you choose Hardcore you have to deal with hunger, thirst, your health (life), you do not get oxygen warnings... and you only have one life. If you choose Survival on the other hand, you should only consider hunger, thirst and your health, while in Freedom only your health plays a role. In Creative, last, you can do what you want without any restrictions. This choice ensures that the game will never feel like 'work' if you do not feel like taking into account several hazards. In addition, it offers potential new players an accessible step-up platform.

Of course you are not alone in this wet and wild planet. There are plenty of animals and plants that share your new home. Many of these are friendly, such as the giant Reefback creatures and the small fish that swim around your visor. However, some, like the Stalkers, react aggressively to your presence. Some plants can even hurt you if you come too close, so you must be on guard at all times if you are looking for copper, gold or whatever.

Subnautica seems to have taken advantage of all those years in Early Access, since the game looks great now. There are graphic flip-flops, such as pixal-like textures and some horrible 'pop-in', but for the most part exploring the underwater world is a feast for the eyes. Whether that is the dull glow of the cave systems or the sunlight that breaks through the water during the day. That said: the game is not perfect, as there are some strange animations to see and we encountered 'framedrops' at weird moments - which is a bit of a shame to see.

As far as a sandbox game is concerned, Subnautica balances everything very well. You never spend too much time on an element before you find something new to see or build. Before you know it you will be immersed in an alluring story while you are hundreds of meters below sea level. The beginning is a bit frightening, but it is a rewarding exploration to unknown depths. One that makes a splashing impression.

The plus and minus points

✔ Constantly introduced new elements keep it refreshing; the sea is a pleasure to explore; story is full of mystery.
✖ Graphic and technical flip-flops; a little more explanation did not go wrong.

Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it!

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