What can be said about Subnautica that hasn’t been said before? One of the best survival games of all time, if not the best? A game so well-designed, it feels more like a really elaborate puzzle / mystery hybrid, given its endgoal and evironmental hindrances? A title that, despite its best efforts, didn’t run that well on the Switch? Well, if you were looking for a more polished version of this magnificent game to be enjoyed on a portable, fret not, a brand new Switch 2 build of Subnautica is available, and indeed, it is much better than its predecessor. That being said, it is still not perfect in terms of its porting quality.

It’s a lot prettier now, but the framerate chugs a bit, especially in visually busier areas such as this kelp forest.

I don’t think any mentions of what Subnautica is, what it made it stand out, and if it’s a game worth playing, are necessary. You can (and should) take a look at our reviews of both the original PC version, as well as its pseudo sequel, Below Zero, for further content. But let’s just say that the game is more than ten years old at this point, if you consider its original 2014 Early Access release, and has been covered, studied, and dissected to death at this point. It has been proven to work well on computers, with a controller, and even on a phone. I just wasn’t the biggest fan of the Switch port due to its technical limitations. Enter the Switch 2 version.

The moment when you’re finally able to build a submarine to explore the actual depths of the ocean.

The changes seen in the Switch 2 port when compared to the Switch one are an attempt at running at 60 frames per second, improved visuals being at least as good as the PS4 and Xbox One ports, and the addition of joycon mouse support. In terms of content, it’s the exact same game as before, no more, no less. That’s not a bad thing per se, as nothing else needed to be added to Subnautica to begin with. This is, purely and simply, a technically superior portable version, but as you could notice by me mentioning the words “attempt at running at 60 frames per second”, things aren’t entirely shiny.

Just like how the PS5 inexplicably struggled to run Subnautica: Below Zero at a stable framerate, so does this particular port. The framerate drops are not immense, and can be mitigated by the portable mode’s variable refresh rate, but are frequent. Performance is at its best when at the bottom of the ocean or inside a base; things go haywire when on land or inside the Aurora ship, on the other hand. There’s also the fact the initial booting loading time is quite long, but to be fair, so are all of the other ports of Subnautica; that’s nothing new, and I assume this can be mitigated with a future patch.

I didn’t need to make my base so confusing and busy. But where’s the fun in not making that?

What you are really here for is to know if the Switch 2 port of Subnautica is a vast improvement over the previous Switch version. It certainly is, and if you’re not the owner of a Steam Deck or a beefier ROG Ally, this is, without a doubt, the best portable version of the game ever released. If that is enough for you to either buy it or merely update your older port is up to you, as there isn’t anything novel about it anymore (the Switch port is already half a decade old). Then again, it’s not like you need too many reasons to play one of the best survival games ever made once more anyway, but in a slightly more polished version…

Subnautica is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC, Switch and Switch 2.

Reviewed on Switch 2.