Subnautica 2 Outlines Changes Coming to the Game in Response to No Killing Fish Debate

Subnautica 2 developer has issued an open letter to the game’s community, apologizing for some of the comments staff made recently on the killing fish debate, but ruling out ever adding actual weapons to the game.

Ahead of Subnautica 2’s early access launch, Unknown World spoke about not wanting players to conquer or dominate the underwater environment, insisting it wouldn’t feature tools that would let them slay anything that gets in their way. "We aren't a killing game," level designer Artyom "Artie" O'Rielly said in the Subnautica Discord. "Go play Sons of the Forest or something if you want to kill."

That comment, among others, rubbed some Subnautica 2 players up the wrong way, and came to dominate the no killing fish discourse that emerged in the last week. Now, Unknown Worlds has addressed the backlash, outlining changes coming to the game.

“We also understand that some recent comments from our team made players feel ignored or dismissed. We are sorry for that,” Unknown Worlds said. “Early Access should be a conversation with our players, not a one-way explanation from the development team. Your feedback matters, and we do not want any part of our communication to make the community feel otherwise.”

Unknown Worlds said that creature balance needs work, admitting some predator encounters “feel more frustrating than tense or exciting.” While there are mitigation tools in the game — and indeed players have found some ways to defend themselves — they’re “not always clear, reliable, or satisfying, and players do not always have enough confidence in how to respond when a creature attacks.”

“This is not the experience we want,” Unknown Worlds said. So, it’s working on improvements to creature behavior and mitigation tools, including adjustments to creature aggression timing, aggro range, flare effectiveness, Survival Tool effectiveness, and creature interactions with vehicles and bases. Expect to see these changes come into effect over a series of upcoming patches.

The crucial question is whether Unknown Worlds will ever add actual weapons to the game, or let players directly kill fish. The answer, pretty clearly, is no. This week, in the Subnautica Discord, lead game designer Anthony Gallegos told fans: “You're not ever getting actual weapons, sorry. Mods I am sure will add it, but we're committed to offering more robust mitigation options with making you the sea dominator.”

In its open letter, Unknown Worlds acknowledged the requests from players to be able to kill fish, but reiterated Gallegos’ point.

“We understand where that request is coming from. When avoidance and mitigation tools do not feel effective, it is natural for players to want a more decisive solution,” Unknown Worlds said. “Our current direction is not based on judging players who want combat, and it is not because we think those players are wrong. Subnautica has always been built around vulnerability, exploration, and survival rather than traditional weapon-based combat. We believe that this is part of what makes the game unique. However, that design only works if creature encounters feel fair, readable, and engaging. Right now, we know we have more work to do to achieve that.”

So, no, you’re not going to be able to directly kill fish in Subnautica 2, but it sounds like the annoyance that comes from predators constantly nibbling your toes, getting in your way, or otherwise bothering your base building will be eased somewhat.

Interestingly, Gallegos has indicated that the no killing fish backlash took the developers by surprise, because they didn’t expect players to choose to build their bases so close to predators.

“I think what surprised us about a lot of this are where people chose to build,” Gallegos said in the Discord. “Many, many more people than we ever saw in playtests have chosen base sites very close to predators or hammerheads. Whereas most of us chose to put our bases away from these.

“Sorry, it was anticipated to a degree,” he then followed up, “but I don't think we thought people would build by wolves and then be as vocal about being bit by wolves afterwards. But a good deal of that is understandable due to both poor feedback when you hit a creature and also the creature ‘downtime’ between going aggressive again being too short.”

Meanwhile, Subnautica 2 just got its first early access hotfix, which addressed the controversy over the game’s EULA. If you're just getting started, we’ve got a Things to Do First in Subnautica 2 guide to check out, plus resource location guides to help you find Titanium, Silver, and more. Discover blackbox and supply crate locations on our interactive Subnautica 2 map, and make sure you don’t miss any Angel Comb Adaptations or Blueprints.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.