Subnautica 2 devs aren't "judging players who want combat," but it isn't happening: "Subnautica has always been built around vulnerability"

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Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds is aware an increasing number of players want to shoot the underwater survival game's shoals of alien fish with a gun. But it's never going to happen.

"We have heard the strong request for more direct ways to deal with hostile creatures, including the ability to kill them," Unknown Worlds says in a Steam blog explaining its new commitment to creature balance. "We understand where that request is coming from." Nevertheless, Subnautica 2 will remain an emphatically pacifist game, the developer confirms.

Unknown Worlds continues to say in its update, "Our current direction is not based on judging players who want combat, and it is not because we think those players are wrong."

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The dramatic context here is Subnautica 2 fans have been stuck in a cold war with design lead Anthony Gallegos and other developers in the game's official Discord server; Gallegos quips in one recent message discussing how Subnautica 2 players apparently build bases too close to enemies, "I don't think we thought people would build by wolves and then be as vocal about being bit by wolves afterwards."

One popular reaction in a Reddit thread discussing Unknown Worlds' new Steam announcement says, "I really do hope going forward that devs do temper there communication better on discord. Half of this whole shitshow would have been avoided without the comments and this communication is miles better."

Though, other Subnautica 2 fans graciously acknowledge that devs are human first and therefore may react snarkily to repetitive demands made on Discord.

In its Steam post, Unknown Worlds is gentle when it explains, "Subnautica has always been built around vulnerability, exploration, and survival rather than traditional weapon-based combat. We believe that this is part of what makes the game unique."

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Players point out that the first Subnautica game at least lets you craft a stubby utility knife to scare hostile sea life off, but Unknown Worlds is clearly eager to explore genuine pacifism in Subnautica 2. No weapons at all appear in the game, and violence only ever happens to you. Since you're playing as a shipwrecked, intergalactic colonizer, maybe you deserve it.

To make this compelling moral quandary easier for players whose instinct upon viewing an alien with funny teeth is to break out the hand grenades, Unknown Worlds says, "We are actively working on improvements to creature behavior and player mitigation tools. Upcoming changes will include adjustments to creature aggression timing, aggro range, flare effectiveness, Survival Tool effectiveness, and creature interactions with vehicles and bases. These changes will be delivered over a series of upcoming patches."

"We know we have more work to do," the developer adds about making "creature encounters feel fair, readable, and engaging." It says, "In the coming weeks, we will be delivering a series of improvements aimed at addressing the concerns we are hearing from this community. We hope those changes will demonstrate that we are listening and that we are committed to working with you to make Subnautica 2 the best game it can be."

As Subnautica 2 players respond positively to Unknown Worlds' message after days of awkward tension on Discord, it seems both the developer and its audience are learning how to be the best Early Access partners they can be, too.

Subnautica 2 devs say no to killing in their survival game, modders respond with add-on that lets you shoot fish anyway.

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Ashley BardhanSenior Writer

Ashley is a Senior Writer at GamesRadar+. She's been a staff writer at Kotaku and Inverse, too, and she's written freelance pieces about horror and women in games for sites like Rolling Stone, Vulture, IGN, and Polygon. When she's not covering gaming news, she's usually working on expanding her doll collection while watching Saw movies one through 11.

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