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Comment by gavmor | Hacker News Reader

I've never been more conscious of my breath while computing than when I was playing Subnautica[0], which proffers a (notoriously tense) game loop significantly involving running out of air and coming up for breath. Additionally, I would take swigs of water when my character was getting thirsty. A surprisingly embodied video game.

0. https://unknownworlds.com/subnautica/

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[Spoiler Alert] Subnautica is amazing! I remember the first time I discovered the huge turtle whales - it was such a surreal feeling. The world design of the game does such a good job of offering a guided exploration that feels completely natural. The contours of Subnautica's world guide you into specific areas and every area has something new to offer - it truly feels like exploring another planet.

Moreover, the sense of fear that I felt when I saw a dangerous looking creature was quite stronger than what I have felt playing several 'horror' games.

Unfortunately, I stopped playing when progressing became too dependent on farming and building - two things that I do not like. I would love to play an exploration only version of the game.

> The world design of the game does such a good job of offering a guided exploration that feels completely natural.

I must have been too dense to figure this game out. I gave it like 4-5 hours and couldn’t establish a sense of “ok this is the next goal” sense.

In my opinion, the way Subnautica motivates is players to play is through a natural sense of exploration - it wants you to think, "This is such a cool planet, I want to explore it" and not "What is the most efficient way of making these numbers/progress bars on the screen go up."

I totally understand what you mean though. I passed on Dark Souls on my first try due to the lack of a specific goal but it is my favourite game of all time now.

The first rule of Subnautica: if in doubt, go deeper :).

But yeah, I remember there were a few moments I wasn't exactly sure what I'm supposed to be doing; fortunately, the world was interesting enough to explore that I ended up stumbling on "next steps" at random. Probably as intended - the game doesn't really force you into taking a specific path horizontally; the vertical axis provides a natural progression path. See also: the first paragraph :).

<mild storyline spoiler alert> except if You're in the void just outside the main continent </spoiler>

Oh right. "Warning. Entering ecological dead zone." Wait, what?!

"Unfortunately, I stopped playing when progressing became too dependent on farming and building"

Same for me. The micromanagement of storing stuff needed for new things to build and organizing it all put me off.

There are mods that fix this by allowing you to build things using resources from nearby containers automatically, among other quality of life tweaks. I really wish I had known about them before I finished the game as the endgame would have been a lot better. I probably would have explored more of the base building part of the game.

Still an incredible game.

Oh. I also should have checked for that. Thanks, I will probably give it a second try then.

The game actually does a pretty masterful job of tricking players and convincing them to go way, way overboard in their preparations. The submarine/mobile base and the robotic mining suit aren't even necessary to finish the game. The final levels of the game can actually be finished just by swimming freely with the seaglide. The rare material that's only available in those levels can be picked up as broken pieces laying on the sea floor, and IIRC you only need 6 pieces of it to finish the game.

> The game actually does a pretty masterful job of tricking players and convincing them to go way, way overboard in their preparations.

The serenity of this game, occasionally punctured by jump scares from the deep - yeah, it will do that to you. You better believe I had a goddamn submarine loaded for bear (whatever that means in an almost completely non-violent game) before approaching the final levels.

Below Zero is easier to play with less building, give it a try.

But the land parts are annoying.

When I was playing Subnautica for the first time, several years ago, I got immersed to the point that 1) I really felt like being underwater - my mind was recalling feelings from various swimming pool experiences; and 2) it changed my relationship with water. I found myself having a desire to swim, a kind of pull I don't think I experienced before.

Didn't get that when I picked up Subnautica: Below Zero a few weeks above. I'm guessing it's because I'm now used to the beautiful vistas and underwater gameplay, so the game wasn't such a full-sensory shock to me anymore.

> "a few weeks above"

Guessing you mean "a few weeks later", right?

could also be "ago" in certain languages

Yeah, it was that. Semantic submarine something.

Either way, sounds classy, I like it!

I started playing for the first time a few days ago, and in VR. I've never really looked at any information about the game, so I pretty much went in blind. I'm having an absolute blast. Just this morning I got to watch my rescue ship get blown up, and enjoyed every second of it.

That reminds me of playing games like Gran Turismo, where I start leaning left and right depending on how I'm steering in the game. Interesting that you get a similar effect but with your breathing in Subnautica.

There's a moment early in Resident Evil 7 VR where you're up to your neck in water in a tight space. You completely fool yourself, you feel the mass of water on your chest, and you start breathing like you're in a pool.

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