Use your favourite features in-game with our Desktop AppGreetings, fellow divers!
There are plenty of people excited for Subnautica 2 after playing the first game. However, there will also be many new divers experiencing the vast underwater world of Subnautica for the very first time.
This guide is meant to help new players understand what to prioritize when first entering the ocean.
If there is one tool that should be your top priority, it is the Scanner.
The Scanner allows you to scan objects, fish, and most importantly, broken tools and technology fragments. You will often need to scan multiple fragments of the same object to unlock new blueprints. These blueprints allow you to craft better tools and progress further into the game.
You really do not want to revisit an area later just because you forgot to bring a Scanner.
To craft it, you need:
You can find Titanium scattered across the ocean floor.
Quartz is most commonly found around coral domes.
Lastly, batteries are crafted using:
Copper is commonly found inside caves, along with Acidic Raion Pouches from Acid Raion plants.
In Subnautica 2, there are many abandoned locations left behind by previous explorers. Some of the most important ones are old research labs and scattered shipwrecks.
These locations often contain:
As long as you have your Scanner with you, these locations can massively improve your progression early on.
Around 180 meters north of your spawn location, you can find an Adaptation Chamber similar to the one from the intro section.
This specific chamber is extremely important because it allows you to digest the natural fish found on the planet.
There are more adaptations later in the game as well, such as Heat Tolerance, but those are found in more dangerous areas once you better understand the game.
If you venture too far away from the playable area, a giant red border will appear.
While the game technically allows you to continue exploring past it, doing so means entering areas outside the Early Access zone. These locations are unfinished and may contain bugs.
However, bugs are the least of your worries.
Crossing the border means entering an area known as the Void, where a very dangerous creature is waiting for anyone brave enough to continue forward.
You have been warned.
It is extremely important to keep track of your orientation relative to your Lifepod.
If you die, there is no marker leading you back to your body. This means you may completely lose your equipment if you do not remember where you were.
Always try to remember:
Doing this will save you a lot of frustration later.
One of your first major progression hurdles will be finding Silver.
You would expect Silver to appear in deeper caves — and you would be correct. However, Silver only appears in specific cave systems early on, while larger resource clusters cannot yet be mined at that stage of the game.
One important cave can be found north of the spawn area, hidden beneath a massive coral structure.
You can recognize the correct cave by the glowing green plants inside.
This cave alone should provide enough Silver to craft most early-game equipment.
Near your spawn location, you will find an abandoned complex without power.
Return there once you have crafted a Basic Battery.
After restoring power, you will gain access to:
One of the most useful early perks is the Dash ability, which can absolutely save your life in dangerous situations.
The moment you obtain Silver for the first time, prioritize crafting a better Oxygen Tank.
Your starting oxygen supply of 45 seconds is extremely limiting and leaves very little room for mistakes while exploring caves.
The upgraded tank provides an additional 30 seconds of oxygen, allowing for much safer and deeper exploration.
To craft the tank, you need:
Rubber is crafted using:
They look like this:
Building your first base is one of the biggest progression milestones in Subnautica.
The moment you have a base, several early-game problems become much easier to manage.
The Base Fabricator allows you to craft advanced items that are unavailable in your Lifepod fabricator.
The Scanner Station helps you locate resources such as:
This removes much of the frustration of searching blindly for resources.
Early-game storage is a nightmare due to your limited inventory space and tiny Lifepod locker.
Once you build a base, you can create additional lockers and organize your resources much more efficiently.
The most important thing in Subnautica is exploration.
Without exploring, you will not discover:
Do not just swim in one direction. Explore horizontally, vertically, and inside cave systems.
Early on, exploration is far more important than trying to search for one specific item.
Just get out there and see what the ocean has to offer.
