Subnautica – Scary Fun for Kids

Over the last half of 2017 my two kids and I got wrapped up in the PC game Subnautica. It was their first game that we played through together (the first game they’re ever really gotten into), and I think back to certain games I played as a kid that will and know this one will have a lasting impression on them.

It was a cool experience to share with them, and I’m glad we happened to fall into Subnautica because it really is a fantastic game.

Subnautica is kind of a sandbox game where you craft items and build a base. But there’s also a medium sized story that you can follow about getting off this aqua planet that you are stranded on. The main lure of the game is exploring the planet and all of the sea life (cool, cute, and scary) inhabited there. It worked well with all three of us for several reasons.

• The graphics and underwater scenery are beautiful, and the sound is even better.
• It’s not a violent game, but it is intense. For two kids still a little bit scared to go upstairs by themself, it was perfect. The game forces you into places where you know there’s something lurking around the coral, and they could almost not handle it, but loved it peering through their fingers.
• There’s an excellent balance between story and sandbox. My kids loved base building, searching or ores, and catching fish to put in our own aquarium. Nothing is time-limited. I always seemed to be the one that wanted to explore, go deeper, and find the next part of the story, which they ended up enjoying guessing at what would happen next. Yet, the story wasn’t too complex.
• We played most of the game in early access mode, which was very highly supported by the game developers. It also game my kids a perspective on what goes into making games (and that people actually do develop, make, and test them, rather than simply emerging from thin air)

There are some marveling scenes in Subnautica. At times it feels larger than it is, and that’s something I remember when I was a kid, the sheer size of some of the monumental games that I played. With Subnautica, I was able to introduce my kids to an imaginative world that they could can roam around and get lost in.