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80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 290 Ratings

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  • Summary: Descend into the depths of an alien underwater world filled with resources, creatures, wonder and threats. Craft equipment and submarines to explore lush coral reefs, volcanoes, cave systems, and more all while trying to survive.
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Subnautica Below Zero - Official Release Date Trailer
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 18
  2. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. Jan 10, 2019
    90
    Subnautica achieves with good decisions to build a survival rich in nuances and possibilities, without ever losing any interest, staying true to its objective. A game that opens up little by little showing imagination and finesse. Rarely this genre in its late game has managed to engage so much without trusting in its multiplayer facet.
  2. 90
    I was blown away by Subnautica. What initially appeared to be a knee-high kiddie pool worth of depth, suddenly gives way to a literal ocean of gameplay opportunities.
  3. Dec 4, 2018
    80
    Performance problems aside, Subnautica will rekindle your faith in the overcrowded survival genre, and scare you senseless.
  4. 80
    Even after four years of early access limbo, Subnautica remains as one of the quintessential examples of its genre. The uniquely beautiful and terrifying world is fantastic to explore, while the goal based narrative keeps things interesting beyond the usual plate spinning mechanics of other survival games.
  5. Dec 7, 2018
    80
    Subnautica is an inspired survival game with a great atmosphere and a surprising narrative. On PS4, however, the game is not as smooth as we had hoped and suffers from sometimes cumbersome controls.
  6. Jan 10, 2019
    65
    I felt that Subnautica could do with a little more work to iron out these performance problems to make it even more fluid and seamless, which would then make it then a top contender in the survival genre.

See all 18 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 56 out of 93
  2. Negative: 21 out of 93
  1. Jun 23, 2020
    10
    One of the best games I've ever played. A few technical issues on console but overall it's a great experience. If you like survinal baseOne of the best games I've ever played. A few technical issues on console but overall it's a great experience. If you like survinal base building games, this game is one of the best in the market. Expand
  2. Jun 2, 2021
    10
    This one is among the best games I've played in my life and I play for 35 years. It's just immersive. For anyone loving free open-worldThis one is among the best games I've played in my life and I play for 35 years. It's just immersive. For anyone loving free open-world adventures, where it's the player to decide what to do and where to go - it's probably a life-time adventure.

    What makes it so unique is the constant sense of "unknown". Sure, Witcher or Skyrim are great too, it's a similar vibe of freedom but wherever you go, there are other people there. In subnautica, you can't really expect anything and it's a constant I-didn't-expected-that feeling.

    The only minor complaint is a slow start that could potentially repell some players from the exploration - you first need to gather resources, build a base and vehicles and only then the player can plan their trips around the vast world that awaits to be visited.

    I really like the story, it's not that obvious at the beginning but later in the game the plot plays an important role. Clever, as it's then not just exploring around without a point but rather, you explore to unravel the story behind the game.

    Brilliant, great. Definitely recommend.
    Expand
  3. Aug 4, 2022
    9
    Subnautica is so far one of the best ocean games I've ever enjoyed, I felt like I have been into a sea adventure.
    The environment of the game
    Subnautica is so far one of the best ocean games I've ever enjoyed, I felt like I have been into a sea adventure.
    The environment of the game is so diverse and beautiful, the amount of biomes, sea creatures, plants, and buildings that you can construct just like Minecraft, all these details combined together made an absolute masterpiece, however the least appealing part of the game is the amount of bugs I encountered.
    Although the bugs the game has something to rebalance itself, it's the storyline, a perfectly well-written story.
    Expand
  4. Feb 4, 2021
    8
    I never thought I'd like swimming through an entire game, but somehow these developers have made it a joy. Subnautica is the survival genre atI never thought I'd like swimming through an entire game, but somehow these developers have made it a joy. Subnautica is the survival genre at its approachable best.

    The game is easy to get into, but presents various degrees of challenge as you go along. Hours and hours of grinding is an option, but it is not required. There's some story to follow if you choose and lore to discover throughout, but it's never overbearing if you choose to do your own thing. There's a beautiful and varied ocean to explore, terror to encounter, and futuristic sea technology to build.

    I've got to knock it down to an 8 because I hit 10-15 bugs in my 20-hour playthrough. Getting stuck in walls, teleporting outside of submarines, etc. It felt like I just narrowly missed losing my whole save a few times. And the quick item select system is absurdly dysfunctional for a modern game.

    But otherwise, it's a great game that I can't recommend more strongly, both to longtime fans of the survival genre and total newbies.

    NOTE: Can't speak to the PS4 experience, as it runs great on my PS5 in 2021.
    Expand
  5. Jul 23, 2022
    7
    The game is absolutely amazing in every point, the only thing that ruined my game experience was the several crashes more than 15 times on myThe game is absolutely amazing in every point, the only thing that ruined my game experience was the several crashes more than 15 times on my PS4 pro with an SSD hard drive. Expand
  6. Apr 19, 2021
    5
    Gotta be honest, I only played Subnautica for the platinum trophy and during my playthrough the game seemed more like a half-finished proof ofGotta be honest, I only played Subnautica for the platinum trophy and during my playthrough the game seemed more like a half-finished proof of concept rather than a full on game. The bugs were horrendous and the crashes constant. My biggest fear wasn't the underwater monsters - it was the fact that my game could hard crash at any point for no reason. Expand
  7. Mar 20, 2020
    0
    Anyone that praises this rediculous nonsense glitch of a "game" as worth playing is a bot. It's hands down worse than the cheesiest mobileAnyone that praises this rediculous nonsense glitch of a "game" as worth playing is a bot. It's hands down worse than the cheesiest mobile game ever made. The earliest Atari games were like epic rpg's in comparison. Peace. Expand

See all 93 User Reviews