A larger map.
Even if it means you spend a lot of time driving through an empty/ deserted area, this would add to the feeling of being in a vast ocean. Also it would greatly increase the incentive to make multiple bases in the game (instead the just 1 main base in the middle of the map which is a go-to in Subnautica 1 and BZ). I would like to have to travel for a very long time to reach very distant ,deep and open waters, swarming with some of the most dangerous leviathans, yet also providing some of the rarest materials / seeds / creature eggs / blueprints. If this were the case, you would have a type of map that strongly encourages the player to build a base in certain key biomes, and then base building would feel a lot more relevant to the player. (on a side note, it would be nice to add a method of teleportation for both the player and the item storage).
My dream is for Subnautica to become a game that feels enormous in size. Both horizontally and vertically. For example, it would be nice if the deeper layers of underwater cave systems were wider, and perhaps even included multiple biomes within the same depth layer. I would also love it if it would take a lot of time to get across the map from one end to another. Like going from the Grand Ref to the Mountains biome was in Subnautica 1, multiped by 2.
Going deeper as a method of progressing in the game should be expanded upon.
A new layer of depth could become a mini map on its own, with multiple biomes as stated before, multiple new tech, fauna and flora to discover, and new threats to discover. The player will be needed to set up bases at each layer to advance their tech to reach the next layer below. The player should accurately die when diving at depths with too much pressure for the human body. Building deeper bases should cost more expensive/ rare minerals to sustain the pressure realistically (the current system allows u to build a fragile glass tube at any depth provided you add some random reinforcement plates onto a completely different structure in the base). Total darkness should be a commonly encountered when going into cave systems (not all of them have to be fully bioluminescent), and no sunlight should occur in trenches at depths of over 1000 m. I'm sure there's a lot more science to dig up in the topic of super deep water exploration, but I really hope they add more challenges that are scientifcally accurate and therefore educational as well
Expand on the horror aspect of Subnautica
The existence of the reaper leviathan growling in the distant murky waters, then suddenly charging at you and grabbing you, as well as the presence of the giant ghost leviathan in the void/ ecological dead zone, were two of the most iconic moments of Subnautica. It is thanks to moments like these that Subnautica is extremely fun to watch, and brings a lot of publicity over from places like youtube and twitch. Therefore, it goes without saying, that expanding upon this fear factor would definitely be a good step to take. Some optional zones should perhaps include predators the size of the "Gargantuan Leviathan" as seen in the Lost RIver, and as seen in the recent mod being worked on for Subnautica. More darkness, more danger, and more intimidating sizes/ numbers / behavior of predators, should make this game a lot more exciting (while still allowing casual players to avoid those areas and enjoy the relaxing side of it).
Take away the linearity of the story line.
Subnautica 1 had a amazing story-telling technique. The story was mainly composed from radio signals and random PDA entries discovered. The character felt lost in an alient planet, trying to make sense of a mystery entirely on their own. There were no sequences of events that prompted players to do specific tasks (albeit that the radio does point to the blood kelp at some point). The player was mostly left to their own to figure out how to progress and where to go. This is a perfect way of storytelling for an open-world exploration game.
In Subnautica 2, I would hope the team returns back to their Subnautica 1 recepy and expands upon it (scrap the BZ recepy completely). Allow players customize their characters, chose gender, body type, voice, haircut etc.. Give minimal amount of information to the player as to where to go (such as the radio signals did, or even less than that).
Add activities to do inside bases.
It would be nice if all those laboratory placeboes would actually come in use. Perhaps add a mechanic of a skill tree related to scientific research, and deeper levels that a sample can be analyzed. Eventually you could find additional information about rocks, fish, or plants, such as where they can be found, and what they can be used for.
Also a cooking skill tree would be great. Where with increasing technology and access to exotic plants and fish, you could cook new foods that provide greater benefits (like the spicy salad in Below Zero, but having much more!).
Occasional predator attacks on base while player is home.
If the player builds their base in a more risky biome, they should face threats from predators.
It would be nice if the tiger plants could act as a viable base defense turret (that doesnt harm other animals, the player, or the base), as well as domesticized Bonesharks for example, that you took out of your aquarium and could act as guard dogs. It would also be amazing if you could train a fish like the Seamonkey to gather specific resources and store them into your base.
End-game + sandbox would be the ultimate combination
Bring back the floaters, the repulsion and propulsion cannon, the stasis rifle, and perhaps even the terraformed and fish DNA gun (whatever it was called). Bring back the customizable cyclops, and maybe also add an option to build a house/base boat to cruise the sea's wth in the endgame. This game can become a million times more expansive and entertaining when player's creativity is unleashed. The community will share their amazing crazy sandboxy creations with things like floaters and tiger sharks, or customized cyclops or house boats. Some of the hardest to obtain items in the game might be an extreme challenge, where the community would have to work together to figure out ways of successfully acquiring it. This means a lot of youtube and twitch content and a huge rise in popularity.
I know that my suggestions are very idealistic, and are unlikely to come true. But I hope at least one of these serve as an inspiration to the creative direction of Subnautica 2.
Make the warpers actually hunt you, like a teleport to you so you have to kill them or immobilize them. subnau2ca could be beaten by either, 1. leaving or 2. killing all the warpers, or 3. Getting cured before you die of it. you lose if your save has 50 real-world days of playtime before you get cured. the game takes place in the degas era and you play as a Bart Torgal. your MAIN goal, is to hunt all the warpers, cure yourself and the rest of the crew before the 50-day mark. then, escape the planet
Going deeper as a method of progressing in the game should be expanded upon.
[...]
Expand on the horror aspect of Subnautica
[...]
I like the idea about deep sea diving (any depth below 4000 meters) in a sequel. Light sources are expected to be scarce which is beneficial to the horror aspect of the game. For ideas about scarier leviathans devs should take a look at various mods. The mod that introduces the Gargantuan Leviathan (based on the skull in the lost river) shows a great idea: When the Gargantuan detects prey it turns on its bioluminescence for confusion. So a player in the vicinity is jumpscared that he might not be able to escape unseen.
A good story peg is also simply found: Before the outbreak of Kharaa on 4546B the precursors were looking for species that help to create a cure which lots of facilites. The player is stranded on a very tiny shallow area and has to make his/her way back thorugh the void to the sectors inhabited by Alterra.
Comments
Even if it means you spend a lot of time driving through an empty/ deserted area, this would add to the feeling of being in a vast ocean. Also it would greatly increase the incentive to make multiple bases in the game (instead the just 1 main base in the middle of the map which is a go-to in Subnautica 1 and BZ). I would like to have to travel for a very long time to reach very distant ,deep and open waters, swarming with some of the most dangerous leviathans, yet also providing some of the rarest materials / seeds / creature eggs / blueprints. If this were the case, you would have a type of map that strongly encourages the player to build a base in certain key biomes, and then base building would feel a lot more relevant to the player. (on a side note, it would be nice to add a method of teleportation for both the player and the item storage).
My dream is for Subnautica to become a game that feels enormous in size. Both horizontally and vertically. For example, it would be nice if the deeper layers of underwater cave systems were wider, and perhaps even included multiple biomes within the same depth layer. I would also love it if it would take a lot of time to get across the map from one end to another. Like going from the Grand Ref to the Mountains biome was in Subnautica 1, multiped by 2.
A new layer of depth could become a mini map on its own, with multiple biomes as stated before, multiple new tech, fauna and flora to discover, and new threats to discover. The player will be needed to set up bases at each layer to advance their tech to reach the next layer below. The player should accurately die when diving at depths with too much pressure for the human body. Building deeper bases should cost more expensive/ rare minerals to sustain the pressure realistically (the current system allows u to build a fragile glass tube at any depth provided you add some random reinforcement plates onto a completely different structure in the base). Total darkness should be a commonly encountered when going into cave systems (not all of them have to be fully bioluminescent), and no sunlight should occur in trenches at depths of over 1000 m. I'm sure there's a lot more science to dig up in the topic of super deep water exploration, but I really hope they add more challenges that are scientifcally accurate and therefore educational as well
The existence of the reaper leviathan growling in the distant murky waters, then suddenly charging at you and grabbing you, as well as the presence of the giant ghost leviathan in the void/ ecological dead zone, were two of the most iconic moments of Subnautica. It is thanks to moments like these that Subnautica is extremely fun to watch, and brings a lot of publicity over from places like youtube and twitch. Therefore, it goes without saying, that expanding upon this fear factor would definitely be a good step to take. Some optional zones should perhaps include predators the size of the "Gargantuan Leviathan" as seen in the Lost RIver, and as seen in the recent mod being worked on for Subnautica. More darkness, more danger, and more intimidating sizes/ numbers / behavior of predators, should make this game a lot more exciting (while still allowing casual players to avoid those areas and enjoy the relaxing side of it).
Subnautica 1 had a amazing story-telling technique. The story was mainly composed from radio signals and random PDA entries discovered. The character felt lost in an alient planet, trying to make sense of a mystery entirely on their own. There were no sequences of events that prompted players to do specific tasks (albeit that the radio does point to the blood kelp at some point). The player was mostly left to their own to figure out how to progress and where to go. This is a perfect way of storytelling for an open-world exploration game.
In Subnautica 2, I would hope the team returns back to their Subnautica 1 recepy and expands upon it (scrap the BZ recepy completely). Allow players customize their characters, chose gender, body type, voice, haircut etc.. Give minimal amount of information to the player as to where to go (such as the radio signals did, or even less than that).
It would be nice if all those laboratory placeboes would actually come in use. Perhaps add a mechanic of a skill tree related to scientific research, and deeper levels that a sample can be analyzed. Eventually you could find additional information about rocks, fish, or plants, such as where they can be found, and what they can be used for.
Also a cooking skill tree would be great. Where with increasing technology and access to exotic plants and fish, you could cook new foods that provide greater benefits (like the spicy salad in Below Zero, but having much more!).
Occasional predator attacks on base while player is home.
If the player builds their base in a more risky biome, they should face threats from predators.
It would be nice if the tiger plants could act as a viable base defense turret (that doesnt harm other animals, the player, or the base), as well as domesticized Bonesharks for example, that you took out of your aquarium and could act as guard dogs. It would also be amazing if you could train a fish like the Seamonkey to gather specific resources and store them into your base.
Bring back the floaters, the repulsion and propulsion cannon, the stasis rifle, and perhaps even the terraformed and fish DNA gun (whatever it was called). Bring back the customizable cyclops, and maybe also add an option to build a house/base boat to cruise the sea's wth in the endgame. This game can become a million times more expansive and entertaining when player's creativity is unleashed. The community will share their amazing crazy sandboxy creations with things like floaters and tiger sharks, or customized cyclops or house boats. Some of the hardest to obtain items in the game might be an extreme challenge, where the community would have to work together to figure out ways of successfully acquiring it. This means a lot of youtube and twitch content and a huge rise in popularity.
I know that my suggestions are very idealistic, and are unlikely to come true. But I hope at least one of these serve as an inspiration to the creative direction of Subnautica 2.
Feel free to post more ideas below ♥
I like the idea about deep sea diving (any depth below 4000 meters) in a sequel. Light sources are expected to be scarce which is beneficial to the horror aspect of the game. For ideas about scarier leviathans devs should take a look at various mods. The mod that introduces the Gargantuan Leviathan (based on the skull in the lost river) shows a great idea: When the Gargantuan detects prey it turns on its bioluminescence for confusion. So a player in the vicinity is jumpscared that he might not be able to escape unseen.
A good story peg is also simply found: Before the outbreak of Kharaa on 4546B the precursors were looking for species that help to create a cure which lots of facilites. The player is stranded on a very tiny shallow area and has to make his/her way back thorugh the void to the sectors inhabited by Alterra.