Mild frustration after September update

Tarkannen

So the new update for Subnautica came today, and I started a new file eager to play when it was ready. New minor fun things such as new sounds when entering bases, new 'heat damage' effect when near thermal vents, and no more water in the Lifepod anymore! But as I played through the game some stuff has started to bug me. Floating objects and sound/voice playback speeds are minor to me, but the biggest offender personally is that the Seamoth uses power like nobody's business now. After I made it, installed the Pressure Compensator in it and left the Aurora, the energy was already at 52% where as it would be around 80% before today. Then it ran out of power completely less than 10 minutes later trying to scout for a diamond.

Now, I was at near the 300m crush limit at the time, so maybe being below 100m/200m causes more energy drain now, which I'm fine with it happening. But without having the ability to make the power cell charger at that point in the game, and not able to get a diamond/cutter/Exosuit presents an issue. And no, I'm not willing to carry excess power cells to swap out repeatedly, since I won't need them later on even when i do get the ability to charge them. Why change it now when before it seemed to be working fine before?

Anyways, what finally broke the camel's back is when I finally swam back to Lifepod 5, it was surrounded by 5 Stalkers and 4 Gasopods... I was attacked and killed by Stalkers, only to exit the pod on respawn and die again to excess gas clouds. I'm reinstalling my game again just in case it's a bad setup somewhere, but is this how it's supposed to be now? This is the first time since I started playing in July that I've not wanted to play Subnautica, hopefully it gets better.

Laze

I've noticed the Seamoth now drains energy from the powercell at a constant rate, whether you are inside it or not. I would return from exploring wrecks and notice a good 10-15% of my power would be gone from when I left. I think this constant drain may even be stacking on top of regular useage, leading to the powercell being drained at an incredible rate.

I can't really say about Lifepod 5 being surrounded by enemies though since mine almost immediately drifted away and is currently floating through the dunes. I don't think I'll be retrieving it anytime...ever.

Ralij

No problems with the enemies around the pod yet, but its been reported as a bug even before this update. For whatever reason I still have an issue with water in the pod, though it is less than it used to be. The biggest annoyance so far is the random colored spheres the pop all over the screen. Even when paused these sphere appear and go all over the place. They don't seem to show at the surface though.

The high pitched warnings are sorta amusing to me at least. Who replaced my PDA with a cartoon squirrel?

Tarkannen

As a follow-up I played a new game after reinstalling Subnautica; the issues persist still so it's not a corrupted installation. I saw yesterday where the O2 levels in my Seamoth would tick between 74 and 75 (my usual O2 cap) as if oxygen was constantly being depleted and restored. This might be an explanation as to why it's draining power needlessly, but today it's even happening in my underwater bases. What's up with this?

Laze wrote: »

I've noticed the Seamoth now drains energy from the power cell at a constant rate, whether you are inside it or not. I would return from exploring wrecks and notice a good 10-15% of my power would be gone from when I left. I think this constant drain may even be stacking on top of regular usage, leading to the power cell being drained at an incredible rate.

That would explain it, since after I returned to my Seamoth after exploring the Aurora it was down to 50% for no reason. If generating O2 now costs energy I can see the logic to it, although why they changed it now after so long I can't fathom. But it shouldn't consume at all energy just sitting there idle.

Regarding my earlier comment, if increased energy cost is a survival factor and needing to carry more power cells is a thing, I'm fine with that. However if that's to be they need to make power cell charger fragments easier to find earlier in the game, because I don't want to spend half of my playtime constantly crafting batteries and power cells.

Sidchicken

Ralij wrote: »

No problems with the enemies around the pod yet, but its been reported as a bug even before this update. For whatever reason I still have an issue with water in the pod, though it is less than it used to be. The biggest annoyance so far is the random colored spheres the pop all over the screen. Even when paused these sphere appear and go all over the place. They don't seem to show at the surface though.

The high pitched warnings are sorta amusing to me at least. Who replaced my PDA with a cartoon squirrel?

Random colored spheres sound like something you should bug report.

Myrm

How many of you leave your seamoth lights on when you exit the craft? Could be the reason for the constant power drain when you're not in it.

Flappybat

It's only reasonable to expect there to be 0 power drain when you aren't inside it. The power drain just sitting in it and not moving feels a bit excessive but I have only run out of power a few times so I can't call it excessive.

Tarkannen

Myrm wrote: »

How many of you leave your seamoth lights on when you exit the craft? Could be the reason for the constant power drain when you're not in it.

Believe me I've checked this, and I always leave the lights off when I exit the vehicle... but the power will drain constantly while sitting in the Seamoth, with the lights off due to the O2 production.

I started a new game file and learned that of course it's not a bug. However on this new playthrough I found a diamond fairly quickly in the Grand Reef. I also found a wreck there with both the Moonpool fragments and Exosuit Grapple Arms, and two heat spouts for a new base. I've adjusted my playstyle to the new energy drain and can work around it easier, so I like the new O2/energy drain change. But I think if the developers had mentioned it was adjusted up front in the patch notes, it would have been better received instead of just being a rude awakening.

DaveyNY

Yeah, NO...
The drain on the Seamoth is waaay to much.
It now makes exploring a chore, instead of an entertaining part of the game.
If they are going for an all out Survival game that taxes ones patience, then IMO, they are well on the road to culling many of their causal players.

I can kinda-sorta see having these kind of extreme limitations in the Survival mode (even there, I think this is too much) but Freedom mode should not be balanced in the same manner.

They had a nice balance of difficulty in the August update, but this one has begun to push the game into a more hard-core direction that I am finding to be less fun and thus, less interesting to play.

Of course, if they are planning on only having a Survival mode for the game when 1.0 hits, then I'll be uninstalling and moving on to something else.
>shrug<

scuba

I like the battery system. Just make or get more batteries. When you finally get the charger it will make sense to you why you have so many.

Tarkannen

Just as a follow-up from my other posts, I thought I'd chime in on how I'm playing after the September update. The O2/energy drain in vehicles is still a chore early on, but now I head to the Aurora once I have my Radiation Suit and Welder and load up on Batteries/Power Cells. This lasts me until I'm able to craft the necessary chargers or Moonpool, but once you get the Vehicle Upgrade Console the Seamoth Solar Charger and Exosuit Thermal Reactor really make the game fun and easier. Due to how the vehicles operate (near the surface and near heat sources) you'll not only have power readily available but also be able to recharge the vehicles while away from your base, eliminating the frustration of power management.

I still wish the developers had broadcasted the power drain in the update notes, as so many people finding out firsthand was frustrating. But now after the fact I think it's a better change for the gameplay and progression for Subnautica.