Below Zero is the spawn of 2018’s
success story, Subnautica. Subnautica
is a spectacular alien underwater
survival sandbox from Unknown
Worlds. Below Zero is one of those
“expandalone” projects where the
developers can work
on ideas related to the
main game, but in a
separate space, so
without the same
constraints and without
the risk of disrupting
the original.
Below Zero is set a
year after the events of
Subnautica and thus builds on that
game’s story arc. In case you haven’t
played or haven’t finished the latter,
I’ll stick to broad Below Zero
impressions, to avoid spoilers.
It’s so good! There are baby alien
penguins! There are new biomes to
explore! There are new Interesting
Holes to accidentally run out of
oxygen in! There are new fish! The
story bits that are in place are really
promising, and seem to be heading in
a really interesting direction!
But it also feels like Subnautica! It
has the same core loops, and types of
tech. You collect titanium, copper,
bits of kelp, and so on, then return toyour habitat’s fabricator to turn them
into tools, fabric, parts, diving
equipment. Gradually you are able to
go further, faster, deeper. You finally
start to have a surplus of materials
instead of living a hand-to-crafting
station existence.
Familiar mechanics,
like hovering over a
plant which produces
air bubbles to refill
your oxygen while
underwater, return in
slightly different forms.
In this case the bubble
plants are replaced by
arctic equivalents—a fish you can
basically huff from, and a plant with a
translucent sac that gradually fills
with air which you can use for a
small puff of O2.
You can be harmed, killed or
surprised by some of the same things
as in Subnautica, but there is also
now a creature which can straight-up
punch you, and something which I
decided to catch with my hands, and
which either stings or stabs you.
Either way it went badly.
The whole sense is of a world you
already know, but with regional
variations in the flora and fauna, and
a year’s worth of slight changes atAlterra (the firm you work for) both
in the corporation’s understanding of
the world and its tech.
Unknown Worlds warns that
“Below Zero is full of bugs, runs
poorly, and includes only a small
portion of our planned features.” It’s
sensible to set Early Access
expectations for those who might
otherwise dive in, hungry for more
after mining out Subnautica. But my
experience was far more robust than
that disclaimer might suggest.
Some animations are a bit weird,
some of the assets are clearly
placeholders, some of the voiced lines
and the subtitles don’t match—that
kind of thing.DEEP BLUE SEA
The only technical problems I
encountered were a couple of
crashes. One came unexpectedly and
served as a reminder of the necessity
of saving frequently. The other I’d
guess was a result of me hammering
the in-game screenshot button to get
a good shot of the lightning effect
during a storm on the planet.
So it’s a little rough around the
edges, and I reached the limit of the
current story content after about four
hours. I might play a bit longer so
that I’ve explored as much as this
early slice can show me, but after that
I’ll be doing what I did with
Subnautica’s Early Access run,
keeping tabs on general development,
but saving the specifics for when
they’re ready for a full release.
You can pick up Below Zero
having not played Subnautica. But to
do so would immediately immerse
you in a narrative which builds on
the original’s reveals and surprises. It
wouldn’t ruin the earlier game’s story,
but it would change the experience
drastically. So if you’re considering
Below Zero and haven’t played
Subnautica, play Subnautica.NEED TO KNOW
WHAT IS IT?
An expandalone
survival sandbox set
one year after the
original game
EXPECT TO PAY
$20
DEVELOPER
Unknown Worlds
Entertainment
PUBLISHER
In-house
REVIEWED ON
Windows 10, 16GB RAM,
Intel Core i7-5820k,
GeForce GTX 970
MULTIPLAYER
None
LINK
unknownworlds.com/
subnauticaThere are baby
alien penguins!
There are new
biomes to
explore!A
round 200m away is an Interesting Hole. I know this because
I put a beacon in it and labelled it “Interesting Hole”. This is
because when I found the interesting hole—actually a
promising series of openings leading further into in a biome
of beautifully twisting rock formations—I was low on food,
water, and health. I needed to swim back to the safety of my little survival
pod and sort myself out before braving an interesting hole.BREAKING THE ICE
A warm reception for
SUBNAUTICA: BELOW ZERO. By Philippa Warr
FAMILIAR FACES As well as new fauna, you’ll meet with old friends
BOOMERANG
Presumably, this fish will
always return to you if you
chuck it away.EYEYE
If these beasties ever
learn to shoal it will be
utterly terrifying.HOOPFISH
Victorian children would
play games by pairing this
with the Stickfish.BLADDERFISH
A boggle-eyed fish you
can grab by the throat and
use to purify water.Already a robust experience, Below
Zero is a promising look at a new part
of Subnautica’s world.EARLY ACCESSEARLY ACCESS REVIEW