Subnautica 2 217;s development
The surprise news dropped today, 11th February, with the press release announcing we won’t even have to wait a full week for the free upgrades to both Subnautica and Below Zero; they’re coming on 17th February. As an extra, a new Subnautica 2 developer vlog, which you can watch below, has been released.
On Switch 2, Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero are getting “visual and performance upgrades” in the form of 1440p resolution for docked play and 1080p while going handheld; across both modes, the games will run at 60 frames per second. Hopefully, the performance will be consistent and not variable. While generally slow-paced, the Subnautica games are first-person, and their underwater environments can be confusing to fully navigate at times. Under those circumstances, having 60 FPS is a godsend.
There’s also talk of “optimized controls” for the Joy-Con 2 controllers that enable “more precise movement, smoother exploration, and refined interaction” with the game worlds, though specifics haven’t been shared. We also have to assume the price tags for fresh purchases won’t be altered since the updates are completely free.
Past drama with publisher Krafton aside, developer Unknown Worlds remains at the helm of the Subnautica IP and buzz surrounding the full-blown sequel is still loud, so if you need new oceanic sci-fi adventures, make sure to keep tabs on it.