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Subnautica is an underwater survival game built around a steady loop: find what you need to stay alive, craft equipment, and use it to explore farther and deeper. For a first playthrough, the most useful habits are to keep oxygen and your return route in mind, secure food and water, and treat caves and unfamiliar wildlife with care. This spoiler-light guide covers the basics without prescribing a precise build order.
What to expect from your first run
Subnautica combines underwater exploration with survival needs. Its official listings describe gathering resources, crafting equipment, building underwater bases, and managing oxygen, food, and water. The Epic Games Store listing presents it as a single-player game. This guide focuses on the original game and avoids story details.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Subnautica (PS4) | $23.46 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Subnautica + Subnautica Below Zero Double Pack (Nintendo Switch) | $45.60 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
![Subnautica Standard - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51W8KjDXA1S._SL160_.jpg)
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Subnautica Standard - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code] | $29.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Subnautica: Below Zero - PlayStation 4 | $22.60 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
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Subnautica - PlayStation 4 | $27.43 | Buy on Amazon |
The goal is not to explore as far as possible on every dive. It is to use what you find to prepare for the next one: equipment can open up more places to explore, and rarer resources are found farther away or at greater depths, according to the Epic Games Store listing and Microsoft Store listing.
Keep oxygen and your way back in view
Oxygen is a practical limit on how long you can explore underwater. The Epic listing specifically calls out reefs, kelp forests, plateaus, and winding caves as places where you need to manage your supply. Before extending a dive, keep track of how far you have gone and leave enough time to return to safety. In a cave, be especially deliberate about the route out; getting deeper is not useful if you cannot make it back.
#1 Best Overall
- Descend into the depths of an alien underwater world filled with wonder and peril
- Craft equipment, pilot submarines and out-smart wildlife
- Explore lush coral reefs, volcanoes, cave systems, and more
- Underwater survival and exploration
The official descriptions do not establish a single safe dive duration or a universal route, so plan around the oxygen information shown in your game rather than relying on a fixed timer.
Make food and water an early priority
After the crash, finding food and water is part of the early survival challenge. Treat both as needs to monitor alongside oxygen, rather than waiting until you are focused on a long expedition. The official store descriptions identify food and water as survival needs but do not establish an exact recipe sequence or a best first item.
Rank #2
- Survival is key: gather valuable materials, craft tools, manage your hunger and thirst, all while evading the dangerous wildlife that sees you as its next meal
- the mysteries submerged on planet 4546b: you came here in search of answers. You risked everything to get here and you will not leave until you have uncovered the truth…
- exploration: Delve into unique Aquatic and terrain biomes that will unlock not only materials, but the answers that you seek
- build your habitat: crafting and building the comforts of home here. These bases will be integral for your survival from not only the wildlife, but also the harsh environment around you
Gather, craft, then expand your range
Collect nearby resources and use them to develop equipment. The official listings describe crafting diving gear, lights, habitat modules, and submersibles, with rarer resources available by venturing farther and deeper. That makes incremental exploration a sensible approach: gather what is accessible, improve your capabilities, and then use those capabilities to reach places that were previously harder to explore.
There is no official beginner build order established by these listings. Let the resources you find and the equipment available in your crafting options guide what you make next, rather than assuming one sequence is mandatory.
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Rank #3
- Dive into a vast underwater world - sub Nautica's ocean range from shallow coral reefs to treacherous deep-sea trenches, lava fields, and bio-luminescent underwater rivers
- Scavenge, craft, and survive - after crash landing in your life pod, the clock is ticking to find water, food, and to develop equipment needed to explore as you collect resources from the ocean
- Construct underwater habitats - build Bases on the sea Floor, choosing layouts and components, and managing hull-integrity as depth and pressure Increase
- Unravel the mystery - signs abound that something is not right and you must Figure out what happened to this planet and what caused you to crash - can you find a way to make it Off the planet alive
- Disrupt the food Chain - lure and distract a threatening creature with a fresh fish, or simply swim as fast as you can to avoid gnashing jaws of roaming predators
Use a base as a practical support point
An underwater base can do more than provide a place to build. Epic’s description says bases can store resources, provide a place to park vehicles, and replenish oxygen. Those functions make a base useful as a staging point between explorations.
Building at depth brings an additional concern: hull integrity needs management as pressure increases. The official description flags this relationship but does not specify thresholds or construction rules. Pay attention to the integrity information presented in the game as you expand or build deeper.
Rank #4
- From the award-winning studio, Unknown Worlds Entertainment, presents the return to the world of 4546B with Subnautica Below Zero
- Survival Is Key: Gather valuable materials, craft tools, manage your hunger and thirst, all while evading the dangerous wildlife that sees you as its next meal
- The Mysteries Submerged on Planet 4546B: You came here in search of answers. You risked everything to get here and you will not leave until you have uncovered the truth
- Exploration: Delve into unique aquatic and terrain biomes that will unlock not only materials, but the answers that you seek
- Build Your Habitat: Crafting and building the comforts of home here. These bases will be integral for your survival from not only the wildlife, but also the harsh environment around you
Be cautious in caves, at night, and around wildlife
The official Epic listing warns that caves require attention to oxygen and threats, and describes nighttime areas as more dangerous. Take those as broad cautions rather than a precise timetable or map rule: darkness and enclosed routes make it harder to judge a situation, so explore carefully and keep a clear exit in mind.
Wildlife may be threatening, but the Epic listing also says a fresh fish can be used to lure or distract a dangerous creature, and that swimming away is an option. These are general possibilities, not guaranteed solutions for every encounter. Avoid assuming that one tactic works on every creature; when a situation feels unsafe, creating distance is a reasonable choice.
Best Value
- Dive into a vast underwater world - sub Nautica's ocean range from shallow coral reefs to treacherous deep-sea trenches, lava fields, and bio-luminescent underwater rivers
- Scavenge, craft, and survive - after crash landing in your life pod, the clock is ticking to find water, food, and to develop equipment needed to explore as you collect resources from the ocean
- Construct underwater habitats - build Bases on the sea Floor, choosing layouts and components, and managing hull-integrity as depth and pressure Increase
- Unravel the mystery - signs abound that something is not right and you must Figure out what happened to this planet and what caused you to crash - can you find a way to make it Off the planet alive
- Disrupt the food Chain - lure and distract a threatening creature with a fresh fish, or simply swim as fast as you can to avoid gnashing jaws of roaming predators
Which platforms list Subnautica?
Platform availability depends on the store and can change. The Epic Games Store page lists Windows and macOS. The current Microsoft Store page lists Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Xbox Cloud Gaming. Check the relevant store page for your region and platform before buying or downloading.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
