Subnautica 2 is taking the live-service multiplayer game route

Krafton decided to make Subnautica 2 a live-service multiplayer game, “pursuing fandom snowballing,” which I guess is a strange way of saying the original was so popular that Krafton wanted to get as much out of it as possible (thanks, IGN). 

Krafton announced its plans in a financial report, and the news comes after a recent survey showed at least 500 studios planned on making live-service games, defined as games with plans for continuous updates of any degree.

Half of Krafton’s proposition makes a bit of sense. Subnautica 2 will let players team up in co-op to explore the ocean, which could be fun. Granted, the original Subnautica’s allure comes in part from the sense of isolation you feel while tackling the ocean’s vastness alone, and the Below Zero expansion built on that in clever ways. Exploration together is promising, but it also completely removes what gave Subnautica its identity.

Krafton promised regular Subnautica 2 updates for “enhanced replayability,” but the studio didn’t mention what those updates might consist of. The original has a loose story that gives context for your actions, but whether Krafton will just jettison that entirely to focus on multiplayer survival or build it into something more substantial, we’ll just have to wait and see.

How long we have to wait is a mystery, though. Krafton didn't update its anticipated Subnautica 2 release date, so we're still looking at a vague 2024 time frame.