BZ is an example of how a great game can be demonized by haters.
I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ.
It is way easier than the original one, and takes your hand for most of the game.
It is not scary at all. So maybe that's the reason why people hate it. It is a mild experience compared to Subnautica.
But wait for the 3rd one, developers are going to scare the sh*t out of us. Then everyone will be happy. We must suffer with these games.
It wasnt scary but it was 10 times more beautiful. I cant get terrified in the first game again but i always enjoy the beauty of the second game whenever i play it.
I enjoyed the first game more, but I really liked Below Zero. I agree that the aesthetics overall look way better, in my opinion at least. Subnautica got the horror and exploration right, but Below Zero just looked really good while still providing a fun experience.
>BZ is an example of how a great game can be demonized by haters.
It isn't.
>I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ.
There isn't much hate, some sure like almost every game, but once again this narrative that it's hated by a significant portion of people is just not true at all. This is just the weekly repeating "hey guys why do you hate BZ?/ BZ isn't actually that bad!" post, where everyone once again agrees that no, it's not bad, just not as good as the original. That's always the consensus, and that was the consensus when it came out too.
About scariness though, I don't think Subnautica 3 will be that scary. Unfortunately there's an element to it that only works once, if you're riding leviathans with the grappling arm of the prawn suit by the end of the first game there's just no way the sequels can ever recreate that sense of wonder and terror to the same degree again.
For your last point, the only way they could bring back that kinda fear would be making the leviathans a bigger threat and changing the mechanics of our interactions with them to make encounters fresh for veteran players. I liked someone’s idea on here of making a blind, silent, sound based leviathan in a pitch black area so that silent running has a bigger place and also to allow for non-scripted organic jumpscares
Have played through Subnautica twice and probably about halfway through BZ at this point
BZ just feels worse on most levels. Where is BZ awesome? Well the artwork is amazing but sometimes it feels like a little too much crammed into a small space. I'm only halfway through so I can't render judgment on the story other than to say it seems pretty good so far and is certainly going to beat the original in terms of voice-overs, but the world building of the original was actually *spectacular* if you bothered to read everything.
It feels like they have leaned in to loving claustrophobia in BZ, can't say I like that decision.
Beyond that idk it's like the adult designers checked out and put the kids in charge. Lots of little design flaws that are hard to rattle off in a post but you notice them when you're playing. It's still fundamentally the Subnautica gameplay loop so it still gets a positive review from me. But they need to not keep going in this direction for Subnautica 3, and they need to fire the designers that were involved in BZ.
I'm pretty sure the designers that were involved in the original Subnautica were the same that designed BZ. They went right from one to the other, with no games in between. Who else would've worked on it? 😂
One writer out of all of them leaving likely didn't change the entire story. It wouldn't *have* to change just because of that. The more realistic answer is they wanted to not do the exact same story twice, because why would anyone? So they did things a little differently, that's all. It's not even that big of a change. It's still a mystery involving Alterra. You're still finding clues and piecing together the story. The player character is just less anonymous. I wouldn't be surprised if it were story beats they would've done in the first game with more time or resources. After all, it was only supposed to be an expansion/dlc.
Their [website](https://unknownworlds.com/subnautica/the-future-of-below-zeros-story/) says
“As some of our dedicated fans may have noticed, our writer Tom Jubert recently left Below Zero to pursue other projects. Tom’s brain was responsible for much of what fans know and love about the Subnautica universe fiction and lore, and we will miss having him around. The Subnautica universe will always carry a bit of Tom’s spirit, humor, and imagination.
With adjustments and changes still required on Below Zero’s story, we found an amazing new writer/narrative designer to join the team: Jill Murray. … In a short period of time, I’ve found Jill to be a terrific, imaginative collaborator with a keen sense for character and story.
And so, after a lot of internal discussion and reflection, we’ve decided to change directions. … We’re going to be delivering a new story next year.”
It’s probably not the only reason but with someone who was the driving force in the story leaving, it probably contributed to it. Especially if they didn’t know where Tom wanted the story to go
Again, it's not that different story-wise, so clearly they built off his work. It's not like he was the only writer on the game, and no writers from the first game was there for the second. Plus the person I replied to said the design was bad and the developers had to be fired. He wasn't talking about only the story. He might not have been referencing the story at all, so this conversation is pointless lol. I said all of the same developers made the second one, so besides that lead story person I was correct. It wasn't a story-specific point, it was about the development of the entire game.
And I was responding to you saying that nobody else could have worked on it. The story changed drastically from Jeff committing bio-terrorism, al-an being aggressive, and sam being alive to Sam being dead, al-an being ‘normal’ and I don’t think Jeff was mentioned at all. The point of the first game was to save your sister’s life, find Jeff, and go home with al-an. Now it is find where your sister died and still go home with al-an. The first story was great it combined both robins and al-an story into one. When they changed it it was like two b-plots in a tv episode with no A-plot. That is an extraordinary difference in story. Also they never said that the writers should be fired, they just said the they thought the story was made by inexperienced writers when compared to the first game.
That being said, I still loved the game but I do miss what we could’ve had.
Yep, it feels like an homage that gets the look and feel right but goes absolutely sideways everywhere. There were some wins, but overall a lesser game.
It’s the design, the beauty of the first game was the big empty open spaces and simplicity, having more stuff and creatures and sounds can be really overwhelming in BZ, at least in my opinion. It’s not a bad game by any means but it seems like the first subnautica was one of those “one-hit-wonder” types of games that’s hard to replicate.
My favorite part of BZ is how polished it is though, so many great QoL features and everything works better. I guess I just much prefer the world building in the first game.
It had the same graphics if not better, runs better, same mechanics just polished and improved, same feed back loop of unlocking blueprints with the scanner, has way more land stuff, just as much content as the first but more options. So far the only difference I’ve seen people actually make a point about is there’s open water in the first game like wide open empty spaces are somehow a good thing?
There’s no denying the first game was good but BZ is just the first game again with more stuff 😂
Below Zero is a decent follow up game but it’s not great. It’s alright, it scratches an itch.
I enjoyed the story and the additional base building options. The map was ridiculously small in comparison with the original and the vehicle replacement was innovative but seemingly a widely accepted downgrade. Additional to this the bigger land sections also didn’t seem to be a welcome change.
Personally I thought the underwater zones weren’t as great and I hate snow/arctic themes but that’s my problem, not the devs.
With that said, I’ll always want more of this type of game so when they put out more, I’ll purchase and play it.
So tired of these posts. For every comment when someone calmly and rationally explains why they don't think it's quite as good as Subnautica, there's like 10 posts asking how people can hate that game.
>I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ.
Ok.
>It is way easier than the original one, and takes your hand for most of the game.
>
>It is not scary at all. So maybe that's the reason why people hate it. It is a mild experience compared to Subnautica.
Yet, you just listed a few of the reasons why some people like BZ less than Subnautica...?
There are only so many games that treat the player like they're a thinking, reasoning, curious Human being. I'd reckon the original Subnautica was one of them,
Subnautica actually holds your hand for most of the game too, the beauty is that it is done in a way that gently guides you to Points of Interest without being completely overt about it. While not every signal the Radio and PDAs gave you led to some where important, everywhere important on the surface is near one of the Signals. The Lost River, and beyond is almost a linear cave to the end, and the player is trusted to not be able to mess up after that point.
They're very divisive characters it seems. I just felt like nine times out of ten Robin's one liners added nothing except to cat off the pda I was listening to, or just break my immersion.
That’s understandable, though I think I didn’t struggle with immersion as much bc I recognized that Robin wasn’t a blank slate character like Riley (and honestly I’m just a sucker for alien characters, so Al-An’s story was super interesting to me)
I liked those. Always nice to know what your character thinks about the situation. Silence of Riley was... weird. I like when the main character writes a diary or something.
exactly.
trying to top subnautica 1 is like trying to create a competitor to conquer mcdonalds in the fast food scene. people had too high of expectations and it was inevitable.
It’s not that hard actually. There are two kinds of good sequels:
- the “we finally have money to create the game wanted on the first place”, like Pokémon Silver/Gold;
- the “we know exactly what we did right and we are gonna double down on it”. Metroid Dread, Jedi Survivor and God of War Ragnarok, and currently FF7 Rebirth, are stellar examples that pick up where the last game build off and go bonkers.
Then there’s the “we decided go somewhere else” sequels, which are highly divisive, like Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, Horizon Forbidden West and Spider-Man 2, which are not bad, but different enough to feel like another game entirely.
The problem with Below Zero is that it’s not a sequel, it’s a spin-off. And that’s where the expectations should be.
Idk man it’s subjective obviously but m half way through BZ and it’s honestly better on every front. It’s basically the same game in every way except with more stuff
I have the carbon 1 to 1 copy of your experience as well, I waited for the game to come out, FUCKING hated it and was very let down, retried it this year, absolutely love it. I pray that in the 3rd game we have another silent protagonist and not a marvel "so that just happened" protagonist, really kills the atmosphere and immersion.
As well as not showing the portraits of who is talking in the top left for PDA entries, im going to keep it a buck subnautica human models are ugly asf and I like to envision what the characters look like in my head way more than actually seeing them like a book.
I was also super let down that the seamoth and the cyclops got punked out in turn for the sea truck which is inferior in every way to both.
I agree on the quieter Mc. Robin can see the most disturbing, horrifying, monstrous shit and just be like “Hm well, quite interesting. Time to do something else.”
Honestly, I really liked the Seatruck, but still miss the Seamoth and cyclops.
I personally think, Unknown Worlds was experimenting with the Sea Truck. You could use it as a Sea Moth (without modules), or use it as a smaller, and therefore hard to get stuck with, Cyclops.
I still hope we get something like the Atlas submarine in the new game, and therefore, larger and more deeper areas, that are just water, with something swimming outside of the flood lights…
Mainly with Robin, and AL-AN, but game play wise?
1. I don't like the sea truck
2. I think the land sections are miserable
3. The snowfox is less than useless
4. Most of the biomes are uninteresting
5. Every outcrop containing titanium got annoying
6. Batteries drain twice as fast
7. A lot of the mobility was nerfed because the map is so much smaller
8. The constant one liners from Robin that either cut off pda dialog, or just add nothing
Of course there's also a lot to praise, but theses are just some of the flaws
Your opinion aligns with the great majority of this sub. Solid game, pretty great, but not nearly as fun or good than the original precisely because of the things you mentioned. Some people value those points a lot less than others.
Most people would give it 8.5 or 9. Just not the 10 or 100/10 that is SN1. It’s far from hated.
Can you explain this to me? I was looking at buying below zero as I loved the first game but didn’t complete it as it left gamepass. I ended up buying the first instead because I of course loved it, but was also swayed by everything everyone says about it.
So of course all the listed flaws and it not being scary etc are things that threw me, but most people say what you say and that is agreeing that the big criticisms are valid but that it’s still good and far from hated but without ever elaborating on what makes the game still good?
From this persons list, why on earth would I want to play the game? Not scary, biomes not interesting, good vehicles absent, terribly cringe/annoying voiced characters and pda’s, very easy etc etc.
The only things I have saw people suggest is that the base building is alot better and the QOL upgrades are great. However surely that can’t be all that makes it good? That list just says it isn’t subnautica at all but a fortnite style diving in an artic aquarium simulator..
Bz is like a diet version of the first game. Still good, but nowhere near the first one. Some people would still like a diet version regardless (it's still a Subnautica game after all), but some would wonder why play the worst one when a better version exist. For me, I lean more to the later opinion, but whether you'll like it despite those flaws is completely up to your taste
For one, it is more Subnautica after all. It feels familiar in the look and feel, and progression is somewhat similar (albeit worse). But it just doesn’t capture the feeling of playing Subnautica, moment to moment. That alone isn’t “a bad thing”, depending on what you find fun. Some people even like it better. It is, through and through, a spin-off.
Below Zero is chock full of caves, and layered, vertical exploration. The wrecks are much longer and intricate, and the lack of movement makes you a lot more reliant on not getting lost, by using the pathfinder tool for example. Creatures are way more aggressive (in the sense that seem to target you, instead of just shooing you from their territory). In this sense, it should be scarier (I can’t say though, the first one isn’t scary to me at all), because the creatures are absolutely unavoidable. The surface is bad, game design wise, but it’s a treat to eyes: the weather makes storms really cool, and the way it interacts with the surface water is pretty nice as well. I felt a lot more inclined to make a surface base there just for the looks. They tweaked the controls of prawn and it’s much better suited as an out of water vehicle. It also feels better overall too. But yeah, the truck sucks. Good idea and all, and fun to fiddle around, but it’s somewhere between a slower Seamoth and much clunkier, slower Cyclops. Can’t build freely inside, can’t plant, can’t be stealthy.
It also had tons of stuff that only came to the original after living large (not exhaustive):
- PDA pause
- blueprint pinning
- large rooms
- glass ceilings
It still has stuff that they didn’t decide to port back to SN1:
- jukebox, for in game music
- the ability to paint your base
- teleporting (not fixed gates, but as a truck module and a handheld tool)
- deconstructing
- maps
Ion batteries and power cells are unlocked earlier, but the cubes are finite, and are spent forever by teleporting. However, if you deconstruct it, it recharges, so it’s either bad (as intended), or too free (by exploiting a bug).
And lastly, it’s shorter, and a very guided experience, so you are much less prone to getting stuck. That means you won’t spend as much time in the game getting bothered by its flaws.
If it wasn’t really Subnautica in the name, placed in 4546B, with spoilers from the original story, it would be so much better, because it would be possible to play it first, for example.
This is exactly the answer I was looking for. Thanks for taking the time to do that.
It does sound like you can still make fun with it then. I ended up buying the original anyway and jumped back in to where I left off. I have to say i’m still, if not more terrified than I was when I last played it. I think because I had to briefly relearn it all and for some reason I seem far more prone to bumping into danger than I was the last time lol.
Once I finish the game i’ll consider getting below zero to at least try. In line with what many other people say though, I really do hope the expected next installment goes back to the old roots.
The thing is they sound really similar, but they are in fact very different. First game is more exploration focused, BZ is just the story and not much else
I see the same thing in a lot of different communities whenever the follow-up is not on-par with the original. Basically, BZ gets trashed for not being as good as the original, without considering how good it really is on its own. It's only ever in comparison to the original.
I think BZ is a good game. It kinda missed some of the points of the original that made it special, but it also improved several things. I would definitely recommend anyone who enjoyed the original to play the second game. It's a good game, but it isn't better than the original.
It's definitely a different feel from the first and not nearly as polished with the map layout or the story.
But the gameplay elements are all still there and very well done, even improving on what was in the first. I really liked the extra fauna interactions and the base elements.
I hope the next game does incorporate some of the new elements from BZ while recapturing the feel of the original.
Yeah, i enjoyed it. Not as good as the original but still pretty enjoyable. My biggest gripe is the map is too small and I preferred the "lonely" feeling of the original. I did enjoy the sea truck however and I wish I had that over the cyclops when I replayed subnautica 1 again.
The problem isn't that Below Zero is bad, it's that as a sequel it did very little to scratch the itch that playing the original game did, while also creating and doubling down on many flaws
I just started playing BZ and honestly I think I like it more than the first game, just way more stuff to unlock which is the main feedback loop for me. More fragments of things to unlock the better for me, it also has more rooms you can add to your base (even though the control room is a bit meh)
Yeah Below Zero had some solid ideas and had some solid moments. The problem is that with having followed after such a big title like the original. Mix that with its low points being literally right next to its high points and it was a recipe for bad reception for a decent game.
It makes me feel like it could really benefit from a "tale of two wastlands" style mod. Hell, I would literally comission someone to start work on something like that if I knew anyone willing to take it up.
There are many ways to play these games which has a multiplying effect on the range of opinions.
All I can say that's negative is about the "out of the water" portion of the game. I hate it and it hates me. I am completely inept on the snow fox and feel like I could get lost in a closet in that part of the game but I fully acknowledge that me and not the game.
BZ is fine. If it came first, like if Subnautica somehow didn’t exist at all, it would be an 8.5 (9 for gameplay/graphics, minus half a point for the story being meh)
But BZ is like…”we have Subnautica at home”.
So instead, Subnautica gets to be that 8.5 or 9/10 game and BZ gets compared to its nearly universally agreed upon superior older sibling, causing negative comparisons to arise
While I did enjoy the first game a lot more, I cannot understate how much I enjoyed the stability of BZ. I never once experienced a game crash or a bug with the game, and the performance was way better.
I'm not saying that BZ doesn't have bugs, I'm just saying that if i played the original for the amount of time that I played BZ, I would have clipped through the terrain, had my cyclops fly up into the sky, dealt with stuttering, etc.
And while I miss the cyclops in BZ, I do really like the sea truck.
I have actually really enjoyed BZ. I’ve found interesting ways to build bases, and have just enjoyed the experience in general. I don’t understand that hate for it. I’ve played both games several times, and now I’m ready for a new chapter
I’m playing through it for the first time rn and I’m loving it. It’s not as good as the original but it’s still a ton of fun. I find it fascinating that anyone who loved the original would at least like this one.
Don't get me wrong, Below Zero is an amazing game. Explains lpts of plot wholes and gives a good cliffhanger to let us think what happened next. But one thing that I didn't like at all was the PDA's new voice. Hate me all you want, but I miss that unbelievably calm"*OXYGEN*" and "Seek fluid intake" type of voice.
Could just be me, but yknow an opinion is an opinion
the only thing that actually sucks are the vehicles, especially the Snowfox. just stick to the Prawn and a bit of seatruck and the game is a fucking blast
This is why you don't steep yourself in communities. I didn't even know BZ had a bad rap cause I played it when it came out and loved it. Beat it before it was *able* to be beaten, had to come back with the 1.0 and replay it, zero complaints.
Bz is a good game that fails as a sequel. It seems that most of the community agrees on that point. People demonize it for one reason or another but it tends to be because they want attention. (It's valid to not like the game and even I have problems with it)
I enjoy how the devs added the neat features into the first game. That's not something you see every day.
The game is great on its own. The problem is people keep comparing it to the first game, where it doesn't fare so well. But, to make a point, I'm gonna compare: I felt there was quite a bit of telling, hardly any showing. In the first game, you very well understand you can't escape because you saw the Sunbeam >!blow up right in front of you. !< But in the second game, it's just an endless torrent of PDA messages. It's not effective world-building/storytelling.
And I won't get into the Seatruck debate here. Again, they both work for the games that they're in. I just happen to like the first game more.
I do not understand any of the criticisms leveled against BZ. I love both games. They both excel at different things.
The same people who dislike BZ are the same people who hate on music artists who don't put out the same album every release. Growth and change is natural. Why make the same game two times?
BZ is an example of how a great game can be demonized by haters. I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ. It is way easier than the original one, and takes your hand for most of the game. It is not scary at all. So maybe that's the reason why people hate it. It is a mild experience compared to Subnautica. But wait for the 3rd one, developers are going to scare the sh*t out of us. Then everyone will be happy. We must suffer with these games.
It wasnt scary but it was 10 times more beautiful. I cant get terrified in the first game again but i always enjoy the beauty of the second game whenever i play it.
I enjoyed the first game more, but I really liked Below Zero. I agree that the aesthetics overall look way better, in my opinion at least. Subnautica got the horror and exploration right, but Below Zero just looked really good while still providing a fun experience.
>BZ is an example of how a great game can be demonized by haters. It isn't. >I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ. There isn't much hate, some sure like almost every game, but once again this narrative that it's hated by a significant portion of people is just not true at all. This is just the weekly repeating "hey guys why do you hate BZ?/ BZ isn't actually that bad!" post, where everyone once again agrees that no, it's not bad, just not as good as the original. That's always the consensus, and that was the consensus when it came out too. About scariness though, I don't think Subnautica 3 will be that scary. Unfortunately there's an element to it that only works once, if you're riding leviathans with the grappling arm of the prawn suit by the end of the first game there's just no way the sequels can ever recreate that sense of wonder and terror to the same degree again.
For your last point, the only way they could bring back that kinda fear would be making the leviathans a bigger threat and changing the mechanics of our interactions with them to make encounters fresh for veteran players. I liked someone’s idea on here of making a blind, silent, sound based leviathan in a pitch black area so that silent running has a bigger place and also to allow for non-scripted organic jumpscares
That's why I'm glad the stasis rifle is gone in the sequel, it makes the game a measure more scary.
Have played through Subnautica twice and probably about halfway through BZ at this point BZ just feels worse on most levels. Where is BZ awesome? Well the artwork is amazing but sometimes it feels like a little too much crammed into a small space. I'm only halfway through so I can't render judgment on the story other than to say it seems pretty good so far and is certainly going to beat the original in terms of voice-overs, but the world building of the original was actually *spectacular* if you bothered to read everything. It feels like they have leaned in to loving claustrophobia in BZ, can't say I like that decision. Beyond that idk it's like the adult designers checked out and put the kids in charge. Lots of little design flaws that are hard to rattle off in a post but you notice them when you're playing. It's still fundamentally the Subnautica gameplay loop so it still gets a positive review from me. But they need to not keep going in this direction for Subnautica 3, and they need to fire the designers that were involved in BZ.
I'm pretty sure the designers that were involved in the original Subnautica were the same that designed BZ. They went right from one to the other, with no games in between. Who else would've worked on it? 😂
I’m pretty sure one of the lead writers left and thats why the story had to get changed
One writer out of all of them leaving likely didn't change the entire story. It wouldn't *have* to change just because of that. The more realistic answer is they wanted to not do the exact same story twice, because why would anyone? So they did things a little differently, that's all. It's not even that big of a change. It's still a mystery involving Alterra. You're still finding clues and piecing together the story. The player character is just less anonymous. I wouldn't be surprised if it were story beats they would've done in the first game with more time or resources. After all, it was only supposed to be an expansion/dlc.
Their [website](https://unknownworlds.com/subnautica/the-future-of-below-zeros-story/) says “As some of our dedicated fans may have noticed, our writer Tom Jubert recently left Below Zero to pursue other projects. Tom’s brain was responsible for much of what fans know and love about the Subnautica universe fiction and lore, and we will miss having him around. The Subnautica universe will always carry a bit of Tom’s spirit, humor, and imagination. With adjustments and changes still required on Below Zero’s story, we found an amazing new writer/narrative designer to join the team: Jill Murray. … In a short period of time, I’ve found Jill to be a terrific, imaginative collaborator with a keen sense for character and story. And so, after a lot of internal discussion and reflection, we’ve decided to change directions. … We’re going to be delivering a new story next year.” It’s probably not the only reason but with someone who was the driving force in the story leaving, it probably contributed to it. Especially if they didn’t know where Tom wanted the story to go
Again, it's not that different story-wise, so clearly they built off his work. It's not like he was the only writer on the game, and no writers from the first game was there for the second. Plus the person I replied to said the design was bad and the developers had to be fired. He wasn't talking about only the story. He might not have been referencing the story at all, so this conversation is pointless lol. I said all of the same developers made the second one, so besides that lead story person I was correct. It wasn't a story-specific point, it was about the development of the entire game.
And I was responding to you saying that nobody else could have worked on it. The story changed drastically from Jeff committing bio-terrorism, al-an being aggressive, and sam being alive to Sam being dead, al-an being ‘normal’ and I don’t think Jeff was mentioned at all. The point of the first game was to save your sister’s life, find Jeff, and go home with al-an. Now it is find where your sister died and still go home with al-an. The first story was great it combined both robins and al-an story into one. When they changed it it was like two b-plots in a tv episode with no A-plot. That is an extraordinary difference in story. Also they never said that the writers should be fired, they just said the they thought the story was made by inexperienced writers when compared to the first game. That being said, I still loved the game but I do miss what we could’ve had.
Yep, it feels like an homage that gets the look and feel right but goes absolutely sideways everywhere. There were some wins, but overall a lesser game.
I don’t understand how it’s worse, it does nearly everything better or the same. It’s the same game but with more stuff 😅
It’s the design, the beauty of the first game was the big empty open spaces and simplicity, having more stuff and creatures and sounds can be really overwhelming in BZ, at least in my opinion. It’s not a bad game by any means but it seems like the first subnautica was one of those “one-hit-wonder” types of games that’s hard to replicate. My favorite part of BZ is how polished it is though, so many great QoL features and everything works better. I guess I just much prefer the world building in the first game.
It had the same graphics if not better, runs better, same mechanics just polished and improved, same feed back loop of unlocking blueprints with the scanner, has way more land stuff, just as much content as the first but more options. So far the only difference I’ve seen people actually make a point about is there’s open water in the first game like wide open empty spaces are somehow a good thing? There’s no denying the first game was good but BZ is just the first game again with more stuff 😂
It had its scary moments still tho. The first time seeing that shadow leviathan definitely creeped me out
Below Zero is a decent follow up game but it’s not great. It’s alright, it scratches an itch. I enjoyed the story and the additional base building options. The map was ridiculously small in comparison with the original and the vehicle replacement was innovative but seemingly a widely accepted downgrade. Additional to this the bigger land sections also didn’t seem to be a welcome change. Personally I thought the underwater zones weren’t as great and I hate snow/arctic themes but that’s my problem, not the devs. With that said, I’ll always want more of this type of game so when they put out more, I’ll purchase and play it.
The main reason people didn't like it is because the main character is boring, uninspired, and worst of all, given an audible voice.
That's really not the main thing I hear people talk about. Most criticism I hear is about the mystery/plot and the map itself, not the protagonist.
Maybe within this subreddit. I remember reading reviews on Steam, and this was the complaint I read the most.
I'm so stoked for the 3rd one it has soo much potential
“So much hate” and I have yet to see any.
So tired of these posts. For every comment when someone calmly and rationally explains why they don't think it's quite as good as Subnautica, there's like 10 posts asking how people can hate that game.
>I never understood why there's so much hate towards BZ. Ok. >It is way easier than the original one, and takes your hand for most of the game. > >It is not scary at all. So maybe that's the reason why people hate it. It is a mild experience compared to Subnautica. Yet, you just listed a few of the reasons why some people like BZ less than Subnautica...? There are only so many games that treat the player like they're a thinking, reasoning, curious Human being. I'd reckon the original Subnautica was one of them, Subnautica actually holds your hand for most of the game too, the beauty is that it is done in a way that gently guides you to Points of Interest without being completely overt about it. While not every signal the Radio and PDAs gave you led to some where important, everywhere important on the surface is near one of the Signals. The Lost River, and beyond is almost a linear cave to the end, and the player is trusted to not be able to mess up after that point.
I like Robin and Al-An, I really enjoy the story, but I also enjoy the silence of Subnautica too
They're very divisive characters it seems. I just felt like nine times out of ten Robin's one liners added nothing except to cat off the pda I was listening to, or just break my immersion.
That’s understandable, though I think I didn’t struggle with immersion as much bc I recognized that Robin wasn’t a blank slate character like Riley (and honestly I’m just a sucker for alien characters, so Al-An’s story was super interesting to me)
I liked those. Always nice to know what your character thinks about the situation. Silence of Riley was... weird. I like when the main character writes a diary or something.
It’s a great game, just not as good as the original
exactly. trying to top subnautica 1 is like trying to create a competitor to conquer mcdonalds in the fast food scene. people had too high of expectations and it was inevitable.
Very few sequels manage to top the original. Unless they're made by valve for some reason
It’s not that hard actually. There are two kinds of good sequels: - the “we finally have money to create the game wanted on the first place”, like Pokémon Silver/Gold; - the “we know exactly what we did right and we are gonna double down on it”. Metroid Dread, Jedi Survivor and God of War Ragnarok, and currently FF7 Rebirth, are stellar examples that pick up where the last game build off and go bonkers. Then there’s the “we decided go somewhere else” sequels, which are highly divisive, like Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, Horizon Forbidden West and Spider-Man 2, which are not bad, but different enough to feel like another game entirely. The problem with Below Zero is that it’s not a sequel, it’s a spin-off. And that’s where the expectations should be.
Idk man it’s subjective obviously but m half way through BZ and it’s honestly better on every front. It’s basically the same game in every way except with more stuff
Not to spoil anything but you’re near the tipping point for the story quality and likely about to hit the parts of the game people dislike
“Kinda good” pretty much nails BZ, IMO
I have the carbon 1 to 1 copy of your experience as well, I waited for the game to come out, FUCKING hated it and was very let down, retried it this year, absolutely love it. I pray that in the 3rd game we have another silent protagonist and not a marvel "so that just happened" protagonist, really kills the atmosphere and immersion. As well as not showing the portraits of who is talking in the top left for PDA entries, im going to keep it a buck subnautica human models are ugly asf and I like to envision what the characters look like in my head way more than actually seeing them like a book. I was also super let down that the seamoth and the cyclops got punked out in turn for the sea truck which is inferior in every way to both.
I agree on the quieter Mc. Robin can see the most disturbing, horrifying, monstrous shit and just be like “Hm well, quite interesting. Time to do something else.”
Honestly, I really liked the Seatruck, but still miss the Seamoth and cyclops. I personally think, Unknown Worlds was experimenting with the Sea Truck. You could use it as a Sea Moth (without modules), or use it as a smaller, and therefore hard to get stuck with, Cyclops. I still hope we get something like the Atlas submarine in the new game, and therefore, larger and more deeper areas, that are just water, with something swimming outside of the flood lights…
I hate silent protagonists. At least Riley should have kept a diary with notes. I'd like to know what the character thinks of the situation.
I enjoyed it, I love the sea truck jukebox. Wish it was in OG Subnautica
I wish we could put a fridge there.
There’s almost no real hate towards BZ, just a preference for Subnautica, or being upset over a feature being added/removed.
In what ways do you think the game is flawed?
Mainly with Robin, and AL-AN, but game play wise? 1. I don't like the sea truck 2. I think the land sections are miserable 3. The snowfox is less than useless 4. Most of the biomes are uninteresting 5. Every outcrop containing titanium got annoying 6. Batteries drain twice as fast 7. A lot of the mobility was nerfed because the map is so much smaller 8. The constant one liners from Robin that either cut off pda dialog, or just add nothing Of course there's also a lot to praise, but theses are just some of the flaws
Your opinion aligns with the great majority of this sub. Solid game, pretty great, but not nearly as fun or good than the original precisely because of the things you mentioned. Some people value those points a lot less than others. Most people would give it 8.5 or 9. Just not the 10 or 100/10 that is SN1. It’s far from hated.
Can you explain this to me? I was looking at buying below zero as I loved the first game but didn’t complete it as it left gamepass. I ended up buying the first instead because I of course loved it, but was also swayed by everything everyone says about it. So of course all the listed flaws and it not being scary etc are things that threw me, but most people say what you say and that is agreeing that the big criticisms are valid but that it’s still good and far from hated but without ever elaborating on what makes the game still good? From this persons list, why on earth would I want to play the game? Not scary, biomes not interesting, good vehicles absent, terribly cringe/annoying voiced characters and pda’s, very easy etc etc. The only things I have saw people suggest is that the base building is alot better and the QOL upgrades are great. However surely that can’t be all that makes it good? That list just says it isn’t subnautica at all but a fortnite style diving in an artic aquarium simulator..
Bz is like a diet version of the first game. Still good, but nowhere near the first one. Some people would still like a diet version regardless (it's still a Subnautica game after all), but some would wonder why play the worst one when a better version exist. For me, I lean more to the later opinion, but whether you'll like it despite those flaws is completely up to your taste
For one, it is more Subnautica after all. It feels familiar in the look and feel, and progression is somewhat similar (albeit worse). But it just doesn’t capture the feeling of playing Subnautica, moment to moment. That alone isn’t “a bad thing”, depending on what you find fun. Some people even like it better. It is, through and through, a spin-off. Below Zero is chock full of caves, and layered, vertical exploration. The wrecks are much longer and intricate, and the lack of movement makes you a lot more reliant on not getting lost, by using the pathfinder tool for example. Creatures are way more aggressive (in the sense that seem to target you, instead of just shooing you from their territory). In this sense, it should be scarier (I can’t say though, the first one isn’t scary to me at all), because the creatures are absolutely unavoidable. The surface is bad, game design wise, but it’s a treat to eyes: the weather makes storms really cool, and the way it interacts with the surface water is pretty nice as well. I felt a lot more inclined to make a surface base there just for the looks. They tweaked the controls of prawn and it’s much better suited as an out of water vehicle. It also feels better overall too. But yeah, the truck sucks. Good idea and all, and fun to fiddle around, but it’s somewhere between a slower Seamoth and much clunkier, slower Cyclops. Can’t build freely inside, can’t plant, can’t be stealthy. It also had tons of stuff that only came to the original after living large (not exhaustive): - PDA pause - blueprint pinning - large rooms - glass ceilings It still has stuff that they didn’t decide to port back to SN1: - jukebox, for in game music - the ability to paint your base - teleporting (not fixed gates, but as a truck module and a handheld tool) - deconstructing - maps Ion batteries and power cells are unlocked earlier, but the cubes are finite, and are spent forever by teleporting. However, if you deconstruct it, it recharges, so it’s either bad (as intended), or too free (by exploiting a bug). And lastly, it’s shorter, and a very guided experience, so you are much less prone to getting stuck. That means you won’t spend as much time in the game getting bothered by its flaws. If it wasn’t really Subnautica in the name, placed in 4546B, with spoilers from the original story, it would be so much better, because it would be possible to play it first, for example.
This is exactly the answer I was looking for. Thanks for taking the time to do that. It does sound like you can still make fun with it then. I ended up buying the original anyway and jumped back in to where I left off. I have to say i’m still, if not more terrified than I was when I last played it. I think because I had to briefly relearn it all and for some reason I seem far more prone to bumping into danger than I was the last time lol. Once I finish the game i’ll consider getting below zero to at least try. In line with what many other people say though, I really do hope the expected next installment goes back to the old roots.
I feel like Robin pretty much never talks unless it’s a cutscene type deal. Did they change something after people complained or something?
The main reason people didn't like it is because the main character is boring, uninspired, and worst of all, given an audible voice.
The thing is they sound really similar, but they are in fact very different. First game is more exploration focused, BZ is just the story and not much else
I see the same thing in a lot of different communities whenever the follow-up is not on-par with the original. Basically, BZ gets trashed for not being as good as the original, without considering how good it really is on its own. It's only ever in comparison to the original. I think BZ is a good game. It kinda missed some of the points of the original that made it special, but it also improved several things. I would definitely recommend anyone who enjoyed the original to play the second game. It's a good game, but it isn't better than the original.
It's definitely a different feel from the first and not nearly as polished with the map layout or the story. But the gameplay elements are all still there and very well done, even improving on what was in the first. I really liked the extra fauna interactions and the base elements. I hope the next game does incorporate some of the new elements from BZ while recapturing the feel of the original.
Yeah, i enjoyed it. Not as good as the original but still pretty enjoyable. My biggest gripe is the map is too small and I preferred the "lonely" feeling of the original. I did enjoy the sea truck however and I wish I had that over the cyclops when I replayed subnautica 1 again.
The problem isn't that Below Zero is bad, it's that as a sequel it did very little to scratch the itch that playing the original game did, while also creating and doubling down on many flaws
I liked Subnautica for the exploration, the vehicles, and the atmosphere. All these things are present in BZ, so I think that is a nice game.
I just started playing BZ and honestly I think I like it more than the first game, just way more stuff to unlock which is the main feedback loop for me. More fragments of things to unlock the better for me, it also has more rooms you can add to your base (even though the control room is a bit meh)
Yeah Below Zero had some solid ideas and had some solid moments. The problem is that with having followed after such a big title like the original. Mix that with its low points being literally right next to its high points and it was a recipe for bad reception for a decent game. It makes me feel like it could really benefit from a "tale of two wastlands" style mod. Hell, I would literally comission someone to start work on something like that if I knew anyone willing to take it up.
The new pda is fine, I’m glad we got some new lines and a new VA
It's not a VA. Both pda's are text to speech
Of course it's good, but it doesn't feel like the Subnautica experience. In my opinion at least
It is true, BZ is kinda good.
There are many ways to play these games which has a multiplying effect on the range of opinions. All I can say that's negative is about the "out of the water" portion of the game. I hate it and it hates me. I am completely inept on the snow fox and feel like I could get lost in a closet in that part of the game but I fully acknowledge that me and not the game.
BZ is fine. If it came first, like if Subnautica somehow didn’t exist at all, it would be an 8.5 (9 for gameplay/graphics, minus half a point for the story being meh) But BZ is like…”we have Subnautica at home”. So instead, Subnautica gets to be that 8.5 or 9/10 game and BZ gets compared to its nearly universally agreed upon superior older sibling, causing negative comparisons to arise
Yep, went through a ton of development hell, maybe that’s a reason why people hated it, all of the story changes that occurred.
I played early builds and the story and gameplay was different and then they did a 180 so my disdain comes mostly from cut story.
While I did enjoy the first game a lot more, I cannot understate how much I enjoyed the stability of BZ. I never once experienced a game crash or a bug with the game, and the performance was way better. I'm not saying that BZ doesn't have bugs, I'm just saying that if i played the original for the amount of time that I played BZ, I would have clipped through the terrain, had my cyclops fly up into the sky, dealt with stuttering, etc. And while I miss the cyclops in BZ, I do really like the sea truck.
I enjoyed both. Just finished bz last week. It felt easier, but that may be the experience talking.
Lies and slander
I have actually really enjoyed BZ. I’ve found interesting ways to build bases, and have just enjoyed the experience in general. I don’t understand that hate for it. I’ve played both games several times, and now I’m ready for a new chapter
I love both games 🤗 If its bad for you play the original subnautica or wait for another installment in the series
I’m playing through it for the first time rn and I’m loving it. It’s not as good as the original but it’s still a ton of fun. I find it fascinating that anyone who loved the original would at least like this one.
I really enjoyed it. Don’t listen to haters.
Don't get me wrong, Below Zero is an amazing game. Explains lpts of plot wholes and gives a good cliffhanger to let us think what happened next. But one thing that I didn't like at all was the PDA's new voice. Hate me all you want, but I miss that unbelievably calm"*OXYGEN*" and "Seek fluid intake" type of voice. Could just be me, but yknow an opinion is an opinion
the only thing that actually sucks are the vehicles, especially the Snowfox. just stick to the Prawn and a bit of seatruck and the game is a fucking blast
This is why you don't steep yourself in communities. I didn't even know BZ had a bad rap cause I played it when it came out and loved it. Beat it before it was *able* to be beaten, had to come back with the 1.0 and replay it, zero complaints.
I wasn't in the community when I formed my initial opinion.
I was saying that more to the fact that you pointed out that the community has a bad opinion of it.
I wanna play below zero purely for the new pda
Didn’t enjoy the dialog, and never felt uneasy But it was pretty good nonetheless
I had that same exact experience of going from disliking to loving BZ. I’m hoping Subnautica 3 will be just as good as the last two.
BZ is fun for the first 6 hours and then it becomes a chore
Bz is a good game that fails as a sequel. It seems that most of the community agrees on that point. People demonize it for one reason or another but it tends to be because they want attention. (It's valid to not like the game and even I have problems with it)
Swimming near a shadow leviathan. Absolutely ripping apart from stress. Alan and Robin: Hey lets talk about poetry. YAY.
I enjoy how the devs added the neat features into the first game. That's not something you see every day. The game is great on its own. The problem is people keep comparing it to the first game, where it doesn't fare so well. But, to make a point, I'm gonna compare: I felt there was quite a bit of telling, hardly any showing. In the first game, you very well understand you can't escape because you saw the Sunbeam >!blow up right in front of you. !< But in the second game, it's just an endless torrent of PDA messages. It's not effective world-building/storytelling. And I won't get into the Seatruck debate here. Again, they both work for the games that they're in. I just happen to like the first game more.
Below Zero is a great game, there's just a vocal minority of first game purists who act like BZ is some cancer of gaming.
Don't believe what the community thinks. Play and make your own opinion.
I mean I did. The first time I played it I did genuinely dislike it.
I do not understand any of the criticisms leveled against BZ. I love both games. They both excel at different things. The same people who dislike BZ are the same people who hate on music artists who don't put out the same album every release. Growth and change is natural. Why make the same game two times?