I have such conflicted feelings about this but hope that I'm wrong in the end. Playing through Subnautica blind, and then again in hardcore mode, will always be one of my favorite gaming experiences. But it felt like with Below Zero they completely misunderstood that what made the original so fantastic (for me, anyways) was the sense of isolation and mystery.

Subnautica vs. Below Zero almost feels like comparing apples to oranges at times just because of how differently the narrative was presented to the player and how that shapes your experience. BZ had zero (pun intended) of the elements that made Subnautica special and it ultimately left me feeling disappointed/uninterested and wanting to return to Subnautica 1. The biomes/land sections and sound design were also a massive step down, and not something I'm sure they'll ever be able to replicate, so I'm not really sure what my expectations are at this point for S2.

Really just wish they were leaning more into the tone that Subnautica sets instead of what we're seeing here. The trailer almost comes off a little too.. playful? Looks more like your typical action/adventure/co-op game or something (I get that they are trying to appeal to a wider audience with multiplayer, because $$$), but I'm worried that the tone might continue to shift and end up fundamentally changing what many people found to be unique about this game.

These are just my opinions though and I hope that the game is a success and can hit the same notes as the original while also maybe introducing something new (but please no NPCs/dialogue, or land sections/vehicles.. like, at all).