With the Subnautica 2 release – albeit via Early Access on Steam – mere hours away, players are gearing up for the launch… one that's apparently "bigger" than its predecessor's.
Or, at least, both Unknown Worlds game design lead Anthony Gallegos and creative media producer Scott MacDonald seem to think so. In an interview with PC Gamer, the two tease that the Subnautica sequel is in better shape than anything the team has previously released into Early Access.
"The game that we're putting out right now is bigger and more polished than anything the studio's ever done for a first early access release," as Gallegos says.
"But as we go on, we want to have a mix of stuff that's very polished that we feel very confident in, and other stuff that we're like, 'What do you guys think about this? Help us drive this development,'" he continues, explaining that the developers want to utilize fan feedback throughout the ongoing production of Subnautica 2 – you know, much like they did with the original game.
As it stands, they're already seeing players' thoughts roll in.
"They're already posting ideas and things for us to do, but as soon as the game comes out, we're going to be able to validate an awful lot of what we thought were good ideas," MacDonald admits. "And I'm sure the community will let us know what they dislike as well, because they're usually pretty loud."
That they are (don't ask me how I know). From what it sounds like, though, Subnautica 2 should already be in quite a decent state.
We've not got long left now until we know what the community thinks, either. Subnautica 2 is finally set to drop in about five hours or so (from the time I'm writing this, anyway) over on Steam after a 2026 delay and all sorts of legal shenanigans, so get ready – I know I'll be waiting in anticipation of the Subnautica 2 multiplayer features myself, anyway, as that's the one feature I truly wanted while playing the original game.
Here's hoping the Early Access launch goes smoothly and the earlier build delivers on all its promises – it's got one heck of a predecessor's reputation to beat.
