Subnautica Below Zero

Mostly PC, but console and mobile too
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Leisher
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Subnautica Below Zero

Post by Leisher »

Original game review was and remains highly recommended.

This is a sequel in name and gameplay, but the story is not related to the original. Although, there are logs you will find that discuss the events of the original.

You are Robin. Your sister Sam has gone missing on this planet that is mostly water and cold as hell. So you basically break laws and go against corporate policy to find out what happened.

I won't rehash the breakdown of the gameplay. If you want to read what it's about, go read the review for the original game I linked above.

There are some additions and they all work very well.
-The very large land mass area that you will need to explore. Not only are you fighting weather, food needs, water needs, and health, but there's also snow stalkers (think large cats or wolves) and an ice worm (think Tremors) that make exploring a very confusing environment, where everything looks alike, difficult.
-A robot penguin type thing for exploring very specific areas. This is the worst new addition. It's just gimmicky and the only thing in these special areas are quartz and 1-2 of a rare material. There's only 1 time you pick something up that's important for the story.
-The snowfox is a hovercraft for exploring the land mass. It also has a seat warmer so you don't freeze to death while on it. The only negative to this is the ice worm's mere presence knocks you off of it.
-The Pathfinder tool is a very welcome addition despite the fact that I never built or used it. It gives you the ability to leave markers behind on your path, so you can find your way around in confusing areas.

It was a lot of fun, although shockingly not as charming as the original game. The base building is still some of the best in gaming, but there still isn't a super strong reason for establishing a really cool and advanced base in game. You do need to build one to advance the story, but I wish there was more of a reason so building a strong base would be essential. Ditto for the massive amount of resources in very remote and dangerous areas that need special equipment to mine. I beat the game without ever needing to even think about going through the trouble of getting them. I realize there are people who have spent time building massive bases, but it's not story essential.

Despite these minor quibbles, the Subnautica games are fantastic and some of the best survival genre games out there.

The developer, Unknown Worlds, is currently working on a completely different genre for their next game (hitting Early Access in 2022), but they have said that they do plan to return to Subnautica in the future and will take a look at multiplay when they do.
“Every record been destroyed or falsified, books rewritten, pictures repainted, statues, street building renamed, every date altered. The process is continuing day by day. History stops. Nothing exists except endless present in which the Party is right.”
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