The mod that made Subnautica twice as enjoyable for me

[Sylvester]

This mod has made Subnautica twice as enjoyable for me : Realistic recipes and increased difficulty[www.nexusmods.com]. If you guys appreciate the same sort of challenge as I do, I encourage you to try it.

Survival games are (together with management games) my favorite genre. I especially like survival games which are quite rougher than Subnautica such as Don't Starve and The Long Dark. I appreciate how Subnautica is different but this mod adds a substantial amount of drudgery to the game. I know this is not for everyone but I know I'm not alone to enjoy such an increased form of difficulty.

I'd say that there are three main aspects to a survival game : exploration, danger and scavenging/crafting.

The exploration aspect is where Subnautica shines. The game is visually magnificent and the various levels to explore are both seamless and fascinating. I'd definitely say that Subnautica is the best exploration game I've ever played.

The danger aspect is rather minimal. Dangers in Subnautica will only kill inexperienced or careless players (except maybe for Reapers). This is fine with me ; Subnautica is a relaxing game and I wouldn't like if dangers made it more stressful.

The scavenging/crafting aspect seems designed for players who aren't that patient. The crafting is intuitive and satisfying but actual scavenging is seldom necessary. By just picking up materials that lie around while I explore, I've managed to craft almost everything I needed. When I play a survival game, I like scavenging runs to be a necessary part of the game.

This is exactly what this mod does while it increases realism. Especially when crafting large structures such as the Cyclops and the Neptune, it makes sense to accomplish several hauls of metal salvages in order to gather the required components. More generally, all recipes require more numerous and rarer resources, which makes crafting more rewarding when I finally manage to acquire new tools and vehicles.

If I had a word to say to the developers (apart from "thank you so much for this amazing game!), I'd suggest to include a game mode similar to this mod in the core game (especially since modding isn't included through Steam workshop).

[bongerman85]

yeah subnautica hit the nail on the head, limited dialogue, beautiful immersive world space, amazing diversity with wildlife. i fear the studio will struggle in the future to attain what subnautica was as it first come out.

[deepdive0777]

Personally the game hit the right balance with me. The mod you describe sounds interesting but after more than one play through i simply would not have the patience to gather resources in the manner you describe. But to each his or her own.

[QueenPixxa]

There are a few mods that make the recipes more advanced. I used one of them and was very happy I did, after you know the game well and know where to find things in abundance, tweaking the recipes and make them more difficult is great, at least in my experience.
And, the best of it all, you can open the file with the new more difficult recipes and tweak them the way you want them. I had a lot of fun doing that!