12 essential tips to get started in Subnautica 2 (Early Access 2026)

May 14, 2026. Subnautica 2 finally arrives in Early Access on Steam, Epic, and Xbox — and if you played the first one, you know what to expect. No clear indication, no quest arrow, you manage. The game drops you into an alien ocean and wishes you good luck. Except this time, there's co-op for up to 4 players. And a lot of new systems to understand.

Result? Many players spend their first hours going around in circles (well, swimming in circles) without understanding anything. To avoid this, here is 12 concrete tips that will give you a real advantage from the start. It's not vague advice like "explore well" — it's concrete with specific locations and mechanics.

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It seems obvious when you put it like that, but it's the basis of all your progress in Subnautica 2. The scanner, it's the first thing you have to craft. And then? You literally scan everything you come across. Every fish, every plant, every blueprint you find in the wrecks.

Why? Because that's how you unlock new blueprints, new crafting recipes, and basic construction materials. Wrecks are filled with fragments to scan — make it your priority every time you go out. You'll understand later in this guide why scanning fauna and flora is just as important (spoiler: the Biolab).

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If you've played Subnautica 1, you know the concept. Except here, tags are no longer crafted at the fabricator — they are built with the basic construction tool. Small change, big difference in the workflow.

The game still doesn't have a map. So, without markers, you'll swim in circles for hours wondering, "where was that cave with the silver again?" Mark caves with rare resources, new biomes you discover, interesting wrecks—basically, anything you want to find again. And it will become even more critical when Unknown Worlds adds content and expands the map in future updates.

Here is the translation: That's the classic trap. You catch a fish, you cook it, you eat it... and you take damage. Nice. In fact, your character cannot digest local food without a DNA update .

To unlock this, you need to find a big purple tree - impossible to miss, it's just north of the spawn area. Swim to it and interact with it. It will modify your DNA so you can finally eat without dying. It's literally one of the first things to do, otherwise you'll struggle with hunger very quickly.

The Wake Maker is the replacement for the Sea Glide from the first game. In concrete terms, they are gloves with thrusters that make you swim much faster. At the beginning of the game, you swim at the speed of an arthritic turtle, and exploring the deep areas without it is just torture — especially to come back up before running out of oxygen.

To build it, you need 3 blueprint fragments scattered on the map. Good news, there are more than 3 in total, so if you miss one you're not stuck. Here are the most accessible ones:

• Fragment 1 — 95 m from the Life Pod, southeast direction. Look straight down, it is lying on the ground.
• Fragment 2 — 120 m from the Life Pod, still southeast. You will come across a coral structure with cave entrances. Spot the piece of scrap metal floating above an entrance, go all the way down to the bottom of the cave — there are containers, one of which contains the fragment.
• Fragment 3 — 216 m from the Life Pod, southwest direction. Crates on the ground contain the final piece.

Once the three scanned, you can craft the Wake Maker and it radically changes your mobility. Make it your priority just after the scanner.

Now that you move fast with the Wake Maker, you'll want to pick up as much stuff as possible. Problem: your basic inventory is tiny The solution is endurance upgrades - improvements found in hidden research facilities all over the place.

These installations are recognizable: they have an airlock, oxygen inside, and a biobed that allows you to interact to retrieve the upgrade. Here are some locations:

• Coral dome in the north — Just east of the purple tree, there's a dome-shaped structure. Go all the way down to the bottom of the cave below, you'll find an installation with a biobed.
• Cliff at 288 m (northeast direction) — An installation built in the mountain.
• Wreck of the Cyclops at 580 m (hot region, west) — In the area with the large rocky columns and thermal chimneys. A piece of the crashed Cyclops contains a biobed.
• Large rock at 220 m (northwest direction) — A cave in the middle of a massive rock, with an installation below.

Each upgrade increases the size of your inventory. And believe me, when you explore a wreck at 300 m deep and you have no more space, you regret not looking for them earlier.

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The Sonic Resonator is a tool that does several important things. First, it allows you to break the large outcrops of resources that you cannot harvest by hand. But above all, it is used to purify the corrupted roots and branches that you come across in certain areas.

Purifying these roots is not just cosmetic: it gives you DNA improvements. And one of them is the heat resistance — essential for exploring volcanic regions without taking constant damage. Without it, hot zones are a slow death.

For the Sonic Resonator fragments:

• 2 fragments in the Woo Woo Lang Hai facility — you will be sent there by the main quest. Upon entering through the main door, one fragment is on the right. The other is further down the hallway, near overturned tables.
• Fragment 3 at 203 m from the Life Pod (east direction) — under a coral dome. Swim below and you will find it right there.

Energy management in Subnautica 2 can become a real puzzle if you don't pay attention. At first, you will probably build your base in shallow areas — logical. And there, the solar panels do the job: cheap, you put them on the roof, and it turns. During the day.

At night, however, it's a different story. Production drops almost to zero. If you don't have enough panels, your base shuts down and your machines stop. You can see the production and consumption in the top left when you're in your base — blue is what you produce, red is what you consume.

The fix: build an energy storage. It is a giant battery that accumulates the surplus of solar energy during the day and powers your base at night. To scan the blueprints of the storage:

• 280 m from your base, northeast direction — in one of the research facilities (the same as for endurance), on the wall to the right of the entrance.
• 590 m from your base, westward, in the hot zone — on a research platform, placed on top.

And for later, when you build in depth, forget about solar. The marine currents and hydrothermal vents become your best sources of energy — but it requires wiring all the way to the base. A little more work, but there's no choice in depth.

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The processor, it's a machine that allows you to transform raw materials into refined versions — like titanium into titanium ingot, or create plastisteel. Essential for advanced crafting.

Good news: processor fragments are everywhere. Almost every research facility you visit contains one. No need for a detailed guide for those - explore normally, scan what you find, and you'll quickly have it.

The cool thing is that it unlocks alternative crafting recipes . Are you lacking a specific resource? The processor can sometimes allow you to craft the same item with other materials. Very handy when you don't want to redo 500 meters of travel just for copper.

And that's why I was telling you to scan everything from the beginning. The Biolab, it's the skill tree system of Subnautica 2 It works with active perks (only one equipped at a time) and passive perks (several at the same time).

To unlock these perks, you must scan specific combinations of plants, animals, and resources. Each combination unlocks a different perk. And some are truly game-changing:

• Dash — a capacity for rapid movement underwater
• Passive water generation — you produce drinking water without crafting anything
• Path tracer — show your trail so you don't get lost in the caves (an absolute must)

Build the Biolab in your base as soon as possible, and keep the habit of scanning everything. The more scans you have, the more perks you have available.

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All your tools consume batteries. Your vehicle consumes energy cells. And rebuilding a battery or a cell every time it is empty is a waste of monstrous resources.

You can recharge your batteries in your base. It consumes a bit of energy from your base (hence the importance of energy storage we talked about earlier), but it allows you to reuse your batteries indefinitely. Build the charger as soon as possible - your copper and lithium reserves will thank you.

It is particularly important for the vehicle: energy cells are expensive to craft. It is better to invest in a charger than to start over from scratch each time.

When you have your vehicle, you will hit it everywhere. Against rocks, creatures, wrecks... Damage accumulates and if your vehicle drops to zero HP, it is destroyed Purely and simply. And rebuilding it is a nightmare without a name.

The vehicle repair tool is therefore an absolute must. Here are three locations for the fragments:

• 278 m from the Life Pod (northbound) — in a piece of the crashed Secarda vessel. The fragment is on the ground inside.
• 218 m from the Life Pod (northwest direction) — in the same research facility as the endurance upgrade, on a table.
• 358 m from the Life Pod (southwest direction) — under another piece of Secarda. There's a moonpool below, swim in it to access the fragment. Bonus: it's also one of the best spots to farm lead early in the game.

Your Life Pod's AI gives you directions - follow them. This is the main quest that will guide you to important facilities like the facility Woo Woo Lang Hai (where you find the Sonic Resonator). But between each objective, take the time to explore the surroundings. The best blueprints and the most useful upgrades are often 50-100 m from a quest objective.

Subnautica 2 rewards curious players. Every cave, every bizarre structure, every dark corner can hide something useful. And with co-op for up to 4 players, you can send a buddy to explore while you manage the base. Division of labor is the real game changer in multiplayer.

If you want a quick summary of what needs to be done first, here is the order I recommend:

1. Scanner — first craft, no discussion
2. Purple tree — upgrade DNA to be able to eat
3. Wake Maker — mobility x10
4. Tags — mark everything you find interesting
5. Base + solar panels + storage — your operational base camp
6. Processor + Biolab — refinement and perks
7. Endurance upgrades — more inventory
8. Sonic Resonator — undermine large deposits + heat resistance
9. Vehicle + repair tool + charger — deep dive

Yes, the coop is optional. The game is designed to be playable in solo as well as multiplayer up to 4 players. The difficulty is not adjusted according to the number of players.

29.99 $ on Steam and Epic Games Store. It is also available in the Xbox Game Pass from launch.

No. Like the first game, there is no map. That's why tags are so important — it's your only reliable way of locating.

Yes, that's the equivalent. Instead of a device held in front of you, it's propeller gloves. The result is the same: you go much faster underwater.

Build a battery charger in your base. It converts the energy from your base into charge for your batteries and power cells. This avoids crafting new ones each time.