The Subnautica titles are excellent exploration games that showcase the beauty of the underwater world. On the flip side, they also expose players to everything worth fearing in a body of water as large as the oceans of Planet 4546B. It’s a great balance of mesmerizing underwater biomes and terrifying aquatic creatures.
That said, the maps of the original Subnautica game and the subsequent Below Zero title only cover a small area of the foreign planet. Thus, the series has free rein to create more biomes and more creatures, vastly different from its predecessors, providing players with new settings and experiences with every new title in the franchise.
The Biomes of Planet 4546B
Both Subnautica titles took place on different areas of Planet 4546B. The planet is described as smaller than Earth and is almost completely made up of water. In the original game, the player explores a more tropical zone, while Below Zero features a snowier region. In both games, players can find different underwater biomes, each with unique features and materials that the player can use to craft useful items in Subnautica.
For example, Subnautica starts the player off in the Safe Shallows — an area no deeper than 100 meters, where they can gather all the food and water that they need to survive. To progress the plot, however, the player must dive deeper into the ocean until they reach the deepest biome: the Lava Lakes region, which is around 1,500 meters deep. Though The Crater is technically the deepest area at around 8,000 meters, it doesn’t have any structures or materials that the player can find (except the infamous Ghost Leviathan of Subnautica).
In between the Safe Shallows and the Lava Lakes, players can find plenty of other biomes, like the Mushroom Forest and the Deep Grand Reef. These Subnautica areas are home to plenty of resources, plus some notes and audio clips that tell the player more about the game’s narrative. Each of these biomes is meticulously created to be distinct from the others in the game, making an ecologically diverse setting. The same can be said of Below Zero, which has its own set of distinct biomes.
Building on the World of Subnautica
Now, because Subnautica is filled with different biomes, exploration becomes a reward in itself. The world encourages players to move further — and deeper — from their starting point to discover cool new locations. They’re then further rewarded with notes, blueprints, and, of course, new places to explore. Though some of the biomes across both games are similar, there are others that are unique to that region of Planet 4546B, showcasing distinct flora and fauna, plus new forms of life. All these add to the game’s setting, making it much more interesting and worth exploring.
Such carefully crafted areas are the lifeblood of the series as Subnautica excels at environmental storytelling. It’s so effective, in fact, that the many locations in the game world evoke different feelings in players. Most notably, the ecological dead zones inspire a creeping discomfort because of their all-encompassing darkness and the presence of terrifying Subnautica creatures. Another example is the game’s Disease Research Facility with its alien construction and mysterious devices that prompt hesitant intrigue. This established environmental variety is what gives the Subnautica series so much potential.
With a new Subnautica game in the works, Unknown Worlds Entertainment can show players a completely different area of Planet 4546B — meaning new stories, creatures, and, most importantly, a new set of biomes. The possibilities are, quite literally, endless. It could introduce a shallow volcanic biome with creatures that have adapted to extremely high temperatures. Alternatively, it might even allow the player to go deeper than what was allowed in past games, unveiling the deep-sea creatures of Planet 4546B. Whatever the case, the community will have to wait and see until more information is released on the next title.
Subnautica is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.