We get you, Subnautica 2 players who’re desperate to kill some fish. That’s what Unknown Worlds have said in an open letter to the survival game’s community following days worth of debate over the studio’s decision to push folks to find non-violent ways to solve their underwater leviathan problems. The studio are sticking to that ethos, but have promised some tweaks to creature behaviour and the effectiveness of tools like flares are incoming.
“We have been reading your reviews and comments carefully, and we understand that there are several concerns we need to address more clearly,” Unknown Worlds wrote in an open letter to Sub 2’s community. “We also understand that some recent comments from our team made players feel ignored or dismissed. We are sorry for that. Early Access should be a conversation with our players, not a one-way explanation from the development team.” So far, so not necessarily a message to would-be fish murderers. Then the studio got down to brass tacks.
“Right now, some predator encounters feel more frustrating than tense or exciting,” they wrote. “Mitigation tools are not always clear, reliable, or satisfying, and players do not always have enough confidence in how to respond when a creature attacks.” So, “adjustments to creature aggression timing, aggro range, flare effectiveness, Survival Tool effectiveness, and creature interactions with vehicles and bases” are on the way in upcoming patches.”
Though, that doesn’t mean Unknown Worlds are reversing their non-violent design choices and giving you a big hammer to smack mackerel with. “We have heard the strong request for more direct ways to deal with hostile creatures, including the ability to kill them,” the devs wrote. “We understand where that request is coming from. When avoidance and mitigation tools do not feel effective, it is natural for players to want a more decisive solution. Our current direction is not based on judging players who want combat, and it is not because we think those players are wrong.”
They get it. Keeping things non-violent “only works if creature encounters feel fair, readable, and engaging”, so Unknown Worlds are committed to making sure that’s the case, rather than handing everyone waterproof uzis.
For those who don’t think that’s enough, there’ll always be mods, so to my mind it’s not a bad way for the studio to go about calming waters that’d grown pretty bloodthirsty as those in favour of fish murders screamed ‘Lemme at ’em! You want some, sharky, I’ll give it to ya!’.
