Unknown Worlds has shared a first in-game look at Subnautica 2, as part of a new developer video charting the highly anticipated underwater survival sequel’s “road to early access”.
Subnautica 2 (actually the third game in the acclaimed series, following 2021’s standalone Subnautica expansion Below Zero) was confirmed to be in the works all the way back in 2022. A first trailer finally arrived last October, but it was purely a scene-setting cinematic – tipping a nod to the sequel’s new co-op mode – rather than offering any actual gameplay.
Skip ahead seven months, and we’ve now been given a first glimpse of how Subnautica 2 looks in-game. Unknown Worlds shared the early footage as part of its Road to Early Access developer video, in which Subnautica 2 design lead Anthony Gallegos offered a small taste of things to come across the update’s brief runtime.
During his chatter, we got a tease of some new environments – including what appears to be the Subnautica 2 equivalent of the first game’s Safe Shallows (the sequel is set on a brand-new world) and a bioluminescent underground area – plus a few new aquatic creatures. There’s a second or two of a strange waddling thing with a fan-like tail, for instance, and a large fish headbutting rocks. We also got a peek at co-operative swimming and base building.
It’s not a lot to go on, admittedly, and the studio still hasn’t announced an early access release date. All we know right now is it’s due to launch “later” this year for Xbox Series X/S and PC (via Steam and Epic), and it’s coming to Game Pass too.
Previously, Unknown Worlds said it expected Subnautica 2 to launch into early access with its co-op multiplayer mode, “several biomes, some narrative, and a variety of creatures and craftables”. There’s plenty of time for things to evolve from there, too, given the studio is anticipating early access will last “about two to three years.”
