Starting Subnautica 2 in Early Access: a verified orientation

This page was rebuilt on 30 September 2026. The previous version was a ten-step first-hour route with tool priorities and a named signal chain; none of that could be verified against official material, so it was withdrawn. What remains is an orientation to what is actually confirmed about starting the game.

What is confirmed for a new player

• Early Access is playable solo or in four-player co-op with crossplay between PC and Xbox, and the campaign can be started either way.
• Official material describes an ocean survival loop: exploration, crafting, base building, and surviving the environment while the story chapters are developed.
• DNA Modification (Biomods) is a core progression line, with two more Biomods unlockable than at launch after the “Adaptive Measures” update.
• The Tadpole submersible is the first confirmed player vehicle and is described with modular attachments; it is reached through the game’s scan economy.

What was withdrawn

The old page prescribed exact steps, tool build order and timing targets for the first hour. Those numbers and instructions were not supported by official material, and the named signal chain included place names that appear in no official source. They have been removed rather than adjusted. A first-hour route can only be republished with a recorded session on a versioned build.

How to use this site while learning the game

The creature and vehicles indexes state exactly which entries are confirmed and which were withdrawn. The systems page covers the mechanisms official updates describe. Where a page cannot evidence a claim, it says so on the page instead of filling the gap.