The future of Subnautica is in danger.

I probably missed something that makes my points invalid but whatever. This was a joy to make, I hope you like it!

Music used:
Glacial Basin (Extended) - Ben Prunty
A Continuous Thrum - Ben Prunty
Abandon Ship - Simon Chylinski
A Thousand Strings - Ben Prunty
Spy Penguin Theme - Ben Prunty

Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:21 Early Access Concerns
2:21 Tonal Shift
3:35 Dancing Eevee
3:39 Tonal Shift (cont.)
4:14 Environmental Comparisons
6:55 The Aquarium Flaw
8:00 Crossroads
9:48 Outro

[justinkunzel]

I really like your videos! If it's okay, I'd like to share a few thoughts on the Subnautica development with you.

Perhaps a few explanations about the EA delay and a few other problems that are worth mentioning:
After Subnautica: Below Zero the developers stopped working on the subnautica franchise and created another game(s).
Development of "The Next Subnautica" did not begin until 2022 [0].
So it has only been 2 years since the development of the new subnautica game started.
Also they switched from Unity Engine to Unreal Engine and this was a huge step, I think.

Next, in the mid of 2022 Unreal Engine 5 was released and is a big game changer to video game development.
But that also means that Unknown Worlds probably started development with Unreal Engine 4 and later - I assume - had to port to Unreal Engine 5 at great expense.
As we know from satisfactory, [1][2][3] whose developers also went through the same process, the upgrade from Unreal Engine 4 to Unreal Engine 5 is extremely time-consuming.
These are just guesses, but I think they also lost a lot of time with upgrading to Unreal Engine 5.
And a lot means maybe a half year or so.
--> I think they'll need more time until Early Access than on the first Subnautica or Subnautica: Below Zero.
They have to develop the gameplay systems from scratch, I think.


Also, there is another BIG PROBLEM that I think you forgot to mention: The former lead programmer of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero left Unknown Worlds in 2020 [4].
That really scares me. A game is usually no longer the same if the same people who created the predecessor are no longer working on it.
Also Jonas Bötel had a HUGE impact on Subnautica 1 and Subnautica: Below Zero, as we know from the Game Developers Conference from San Francisco.
There is a recording from his talk [5][6].
Jonas Bötel introduced a lot in Subnautica and he was apparently one of the developers who worked on subnautica from the very beginning.
He also introduced a lot of these intelligent "early access learning things" (like the Telemetry system, with which the game was improved a lot, the feedback system, the player heat maps and so on) from which they learned a lot about there players and community.
The Game Director of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero also talked about these systems and the process at the GDG.
--> This fact scares me a lot.

Another problem:
Due to the fact, that they switched to Unreal Engine (don't get me wrong, i'm a big unreal engine fan), they have to build most things from scratch and this also means, that - I guess - we will maybe lose some features from the predecessor games which are a matter of course for us. For example some base building parts or others.
The fact that Unknown Worlds has remained silent about "The Next Subnautica" for so long is not a good sign for me.
I completely agree with you.

Sources:

[sosison_v_teste]

1. At 9:10 it is not concept art, it's a screenshot. All the other photos that they showed are also screenshots.
2. One of the developers said in an interview that the map will be HUGE, and also that during early access it will constantly expand (so problems with the map like in Below Zero are unlikely to appear in the second part)
3. Subnautica 1 also did not immediately enter early access. Before that, it was developed for at least a year until the skeleton of the game was ready. The situation with the second part is most likely similar. There will be no early access until the base of the game is ready. And it’s not surprising that it takes longer than last time, because this time the game is being developed on Unreal Engine 5, and the scale has also grown significantly + the developers were busy with another game (moonbreaker) for some time
4. I highly recommend watching the interview with the developer Obraxis on the Anthomnia channel. There was a lot of interesting information

[ByteBits]

I can still hear the Reaper Leviathan’s roar whenever I’m near a large body of water

[maxw]

Bro you're overthinking, subnautica below zero was never intended to be as large scale as the first subnautica because in early development it was first envisioned as a DLC, much of the early design work of the levels started with this in mind, It's not that they stop listening to feedback.


Tbh DLC that transition into full games often suffer from these problems, often feeling shallower and shorter than full price games because early design work is done with a much smaller scope in mind

[tammygalizia]

man, some of Below Zeros biomes are just plain beautiful. I know that's the entire point of this video (below zero feels more like a nice looking display, other than a world with alive creatures) but I do hope they carry some of that artistic talent over to subnautica 2. I just hope they know when to stop making base locations and make actual biomes.

[fuunygurl]

Ironically, I think having early access is part of why so many people felt disappointed by the full release of Below Zero. Despite being very incomplete, the story felt far more compelling than the story they ended up with.

[howdoeatjerry]

I think we should put hope in Unknown Worlds. They seem to be moving in the right direction, and I personally appreciate the secrecy about Subnautica 2, because not knowing what I’m getting into is much more fun for me.

[ravia]

Never realized this video was from a creator with only a mere 500 subscribers, really really underrated in my opinion

[SilliestBilly-kyhp]

From the trailer its looking promising

[TowserTheCat]

I want a prequel that goes through the events of the Degassi

[channelname]

i really enjoyed below zero, even if there are some flaws.

[anniegillett]

I hope we get to spend most of it Subnautical. I really wasn't a fan of the icy above-ground areas, and when not investigating a research site I just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. In the OG Subnautica I enjoy hanging out in most biomes, and it helped that the above water areas were relatively small but interesting.

[Ofi]

Early acces reales in 2025 it just got confirmed : )

[ADpCharlie]

I gotta admit, I'm a bit worried about the multiplayer aspect. Yes, I know the base game is still gonna be single player but there's always a risk that the devs put so much focus, effort and resources into co-op that single player mode ends up suffering because of that. I trust that UW will find a way to balance it out but it's still a worry.

[melaniewilson]

Below Zero went into early access so soon after Subnautica’s full release because it was a DLC that got so big they decided to make it a spinoff. I’m very excited for Subnautica 2’s early access release, from what it sounds like it’s going to be bigger, deeper, and more terrifying.

[Ben_perfect]

if you didn't know unknown worlds actually released on their website that the 3rd game will hopefully be in early access by 2024

[JD_]

They have been working on another game. I really dont think them going into early access in 2025 is going to be a problem. Since they have been heavily working on another game they havent been working on Subnautica 2 the entire time

[ballyerrallyeryup]

I hope we know or atleast see what happens to robin and Alan when they go back to the architect home world

[zorpglorp]

One thing to keep in mind, is that unknown is working with an entirely new engine and i'm assuming they're using this time to figure out the bearings and rebuild everything that they had from the ground up. It's likely that the game is barely playable in its current state, and those fancy screenshots we saw are probably all they have of the game, the mechanics and creature behavior are probably very very far from finished.

[omegaotaku]

2:51 What biome was this background footage recorded in?