The Precursors in Subnautica Just Don't Make Sense!

In today's video, I'll be talking about the mysterious race of Precursors / Architects from the world of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero and more specifically, which aspect of their lore doesn't exactly make sense! Please let me know what you think about these down in the comments!

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[avvxkened_ow]

What also doesn't make sense is that a speed runner can do what the precursors could not in 37 minutes.

[trueweaver]

1. Precursor biology is different then humans so it might have different effects, symptoms, or death rates and speed as well. This might have decimated their populations so quickly as that they couldn't construct new bodies or enough mechanical semi robotic bodies. Their presence isn't as large due to probably most of the precursors dying of kharaa or abandoning the planet. Their civilization could have collapsed from such a large pandemic which would have crushed infrastructure routes and all non automated jobs and positions wouldn't be filled. Their entire civilization might have fallen thus why they didn't try to return.

2. The process of finding a cure would have taken a long time considering the other research they were doing, I think that the bacterium was probably somewhat contained during their initial research and construction of facilities, so they might not have payed full attention to finding a cure, but once the outbreaks began it was simply too late to speed up the process and replace the dead.

[oceandeeps]

Precursors: Die trying to cure themselves even when they have crazy technology
Me, with my prawn, and got cured: "I have never died... IM GOD"

[SkimBee]

Well, look at how humans are during a pandemic.

[parceustheawesome]

one thing to mention is that Al-An's computer body was dying and he needed to find a new one quickly. Perhaps there were many other Precursors and they all just ran out of time. This could also explain why there aren't any others on the planet.

[pixiethebernesemountaindog]

"No jumpscaes"


Me: I don't know if I believe you....

[noahjahnsen]

"It takes two weeks for an individual to die from this bacterium"

me who had the virus in the game for 1000 years before getting cured:

I see no god up here... OTHER THAN ME!!!

[okurimono]

About the precusor's minds being stored, I have two counter ideas.
1. The might store their minds in some really really good hidden place, like in the core of the planet.
2. They could panicked and store most of minds in the one huge storage that could corrupt, technology isn't perfect and even the most Intelligent lifeform does irrational things when panic happens. Look at homo sapiens :D.
Anyways that was great video as always and best spent 6 minutes this evening, cheers!

[spacewalker]

Actually it makes sense for me because the precursors didnt come back because they are technically extinct
(Apart for their minds stored)

[lutherthedeadgrunt]

“No jumpscares”
Me: Ok
*sees a creature that hurts the player*
Me: IT LIED TO

[rohankishibe]

You missed the opportunity to say "grab your tablets, and let's go"

[Xander-mnbi]

What makes me the most confused, is that fact that the cure is on a completely different planet who knows how far away form their home, but I guess it kind of makes sense, but why this exact cure, unless the cure cures all diseases

[nestiboy]

Precursors be like: Oh, the player is coming, let's all hide quick!

[Archersforeal]

Subnautica doesn’t make sense, that’s what makes it a great game

[nigelcore]

Wasn't there in below zero (before they rewrote the story) a conversation between Allan and Sam on how easily they could have gotten the enzyme by simply listening to the emprerors wishes, to which Allan replies that it just didn't occur to them to listen as they were "scared" or something?

[neonpeeper]

Cyclop: *exist*
Reaper: Hoppity Poppity your hull will lose integrity

[swapnil]

It warms my heart when YouTubers reply to all the comments… Keep it up!
(Coz many of them forget after getting popular).

[asliceofcheese]

I’m going to have to agree with you your explanations just make a lot of sense good job

[MrAppleSalad]

1: Storing a mind in a purely mechanical way is extremely difficult even for the Precursors. In the first game they had a databank which stored a number of unconscious minds, however by the time we get there it seems that it's run out of power, and even if it hadn't these minds are clearly not active. They're by all means "asleep", and you can't really pilot a body when you're asleep. In order to put a conscious mind onto a computer requires MASSIVE energy and scale as we see with Al-An's mind. That required an entire facility just to store one mind, and that would be extremely difficult to build a body around. That's all to say the Precursors COULDN'T transfer to fully inorganic bodies. Their technology isn't at that level yet. As for why they couldn't just build new bodies that were immune, the Kharaa doesn't seem to have any issue infecting pretty much any organic life it comes into contact with. 4546b is not where it originated yet one containment breach was enough to infect the entire planet. My guess is that it is some kind of super bacteria that slowly mutated as the Precursors developed better and better antibodies. Superbugs are a real thing, viruses that constantly mutate to combat anything we throw at it, getting stronger every time we develop a cure. Scary stuff.

2: The Kharaa was a galactic threat, and there were several groups of Precursors sent to different worlds across the universe to try and find a cure. Al-An was the head of the 4546b research group, and it's unknown how many people he had working under him but according to Al-An the ENTIRE Precursor race was only "tens of thousands", to it likely wasn't any more then a couple dozen sent to each planet. Several likely died when the Sea Dragon attacked, and others died in various accidents. In the end the majority of the survivors were uploaded to bulk storage once the call was made to put 4546b under lockdown, whereas Al-An constructed a facility to store his own mind in hopes someone would some day come to help.

3: The Sea Emperor said that she was unable to communicate with the precursors, her telepathy didn't work on them. My guess would be that's because they're all connected to this big hive mind thing and already using their own "signal" of sort, of which the Sea Emperor was "incompatible". The Enzyme that the momma was producing wasn't very pure, and wasn't a permanent solution hence it being unable to cure the planet let alone the entire galactic race. They required the enzymes from the juveniles but were unable to figure out the requirements necessary to get the eggs to hatch, eventually even deciding to forcefully remove the embryos which of course didn't work. The Sea Emperor was able to communicate with us and tell us what they required, hence us going around and getting all those plants and stuff at the end of the game.

[sodagirl]

Robin: "Why didn't you just ask the sea emperor for the cure?"
Al-An: "Plot Convenience"