If your life has been upsetting devoid of underwater terror since polishing off Subnautica: Below Zero, a glimmer of nautical promise is on the (distant) horizon, with publisher Krafton confirming the next instalment in the ocean survival series is anticipateed to arrive in the first half of 2025.
Official word that a new Subnautica game was on the way first surfaced in April last year, when developer Unknown Worlds – the studio behind the series’ original 2018 entry and its 2021 follow-up Subnautica: Below Zero – announced it was seeking a senior narrative designer to “help shape the next game in the Subnautica universe”.
And now, a little over 18 months later, the new Subnautica has made an appearance in publisher Krafton’s slate of upcoming releases, as shared via the deeply unsexy means of financial report PowerPoint slide presentation (thanks Rock Paper Shotgun). It’s set to launch in “1H25” – the first half of 2025 – but, beyond that, details are limited.
Krafton confirms the “Next Subnautica”, which probably won’t be its final name, is still being developed by Unknown Worlds – the studio was acquired by Krafton at the tail-end of 2021 – and that it’ll be launching for PC and consoles. Will it see players returning to the ocean planet of 4546B for a third time? It could be a while before we find out more.
Other games on Krafton’s slate of releases include PUBG Studio’s extraction shooter Project Black Budget, which is coming to PC and consoles in the second half of next year, and Project Goldrush – an “action-adventure sandbox” from Vector North that’s expected to launch in the first half of 2025. Unknown Worlds is, of course, also currently developing turn-based strategy game Moonbreaker alongside the next Subnautica, which Eurogamer’s Robert Purchese quite liked when he played it in early access at the end of last year.
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