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Metro 2039Story and Lore
In Subnautica 2 you are a Pioneer on Alterra's colony ship Cicada, carrying 40,000 people away from a war-torn home, when something goes wrong and you wake on an alien ocean world where an earlier wave of colonists has vanished. The story is unfinished in Early Access as of Nov 4, 2026; its next chapter comes with Early Access 2 in December 2026.
Spoiler warning: the premise below is what Unknown Worlds' store page tells you. Sections marked SPOILERS describe what you learn in the game.
Subnautica 2 is the story of a Pioneer: one of the crew of Alterra's colony ship CICADA, sent to build a home for "the other 40,000 souls aboard" after "ongoing conflict" drove humanity from its home (Xbox Wire, May 4, 2026). "Something goes awry" on the way, and you wake on an alien ocean world while the ship's AI insists the mission must continue (Steam). The world is the ocean moon Proteus, as GamingBolt and MeinMMO name it; the Cicada was bound for the desert planet Zezura (MeinMMO, May 27, 2026). Humans have been here before you: a failed colony whose people are gone, and whose fate you piece together from blackbox recordings, among the ruins of an alien civilization, the Axum, and an infection called the Bloom. The story is unfinished in Early Access, as of Nov 4, 2026: its conclusion is planned for 1.0 (TheGamer, May 1, 2026), and the next chapter arrives with Early Access 2 in December 2026.
Quick facts
| You are | A Pioneer of Alterra's colony program; the game calls you a "Qualified Investigator" (Unknown Worlds, Nov 3, 2026) |
| Ship | The colony ship Cicada (CICADA in store copy), with 40,000 people aboard |
| World | The ocean moon Proteus, as MeinMMO and GamingBolt name it |
| Intended destination | Zezura, a desert planet |
| AI | NOA, the "Noetic Advisor" (GamingBolt, May 18, 2026) |
| Alien civilization | The Axum |
| Infection | The Bloom |
| Story state | Unfinished; ends at the Observatory in Early Access, as of Nov 4, 2026 |
| Next chapter | Early Access 2, December 2026 |
| Connected to | The first Subnautica's universe: Alterra, the Ariadne Arm, Ryley Robinson in the audio drama |
The premise: Alterra and the Pioneers
Alterra, the megacorporation of the first two games, runs the Pioneer program: it offers a new life on a new world to people fleeing a conflict at home, and the Cicada carries them (Steam). The store copy closes with "The future of humanity on this world is in your hands" and asks you to "learn to adapt to a planet that might not want you there" (Xbox Wire). Before launch, Alterra "recruited" fans on a marketing site where they could take the "A.C.A.T. (Alterra Career Aptitude Test)" (Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026).
Everyone on the mission is "printed": minds uploaded, bodies 3D printed, which is why you can change your body at any time (Kotaku, May 14, 2026) and why death is "reprinting" at a Biobed (Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026). The game begins with your "initial print" in a Biobed in the Deep Start awakening room, then a door scan and the Lifepod launch (Unknown Worlds).
The world: Proteus and Zezura
Unknown Worlds calls it "an all-new alien world" (Steam) and has not, in its own posts, named it. MeinMMO and GamingBolt name it Proteus, a hostile moon that is almost all ocean, and Zezura the planet the colonists meant to reach (MeinMMO; GamingBolt); PCGamesN instead writes of the Bloom spreading "through Zezura" (May 14, 2026). Unknown Worlds' audio drama treats Zezura as the hope: a family asks whether it is "the light at the end of the tunnel" (Unknown Worlds, Jan 29, 2026). A gas giant hangs in the sky (Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026), and a vast tree, the World Tree, stands on the horizon beyond the Early Access fence (Map Edge and World Tree).
How the story is told
There is no quest log. You learn what happened from blackbox recordings of lost colonists, data logs, radio signals and the places themselves, while NOA sends you waypoints (MeinMMO). Your character is silent, and NOA speaks to you only at its terminals, not in the field (Wccftech, May 14, 2026). Investigations are tracked in the Databank, and since 1.1 audiologs wait in the PDA instead of playing at once. Kotaku found the story took about five hours to show itself (May 14, 2026). The people are on Characters; the route is on Story Walkthrough.
SPOILERS: what you learn in Early Access
The colonists who came first are gone; the developers summed up the mood as "everybody's gone to the rapture" (Wccftech). Their logs speak of "Masefield Syndrome", which GamingBolt describes as coming from the moon's poisonous water and making sufferers hear the voices of the dead (GamingBolt, May 18, 2026). Recordings hint that you may be the last human, that the printing technology could be used for forced labor, and that a tree may be poisoning the world (PCGamesN, May 14, 2026). Biobeds explain your rebirth but can also reset a mind and erase memories (GamingBolt).
NOA is not what it seems. Kotaku calls it "suspicious", insisting the mission continue (Kotaku); GamingBolt writes that NOA "appears to be up to no good", while a second AI voice seems trustworthy. A bunker named "Unauthorized NOA Modification" is one of the colonists' shelters (Game Rant, May 23, 2026).
East of the start lie the ruins of The Axum, an alien civilization that left an Observatory, a Power Plant, Metal Farms and a "Rosetta Stone" that makes their writing readable once you gain Axum Vision. Across the map, The Bloom infects creatures and the Angel Combs whose blossoms adapt your body. The Early Access story ends at the Observatory; no ending exists yet (Unknown Worlds, May 15, 2026).
Ties to the first Subnautica
Subnautica 2 shares the first game's universe: Alterra, the Ariadne Arm (named in the audio drama), and Ryley Robinson, the first game's hero, as a podcast host in Voices from Beyond, the five-episode audio drama about a family on a Mongolian settlement before the Cicada's voyage (Unknown Worlds, Nov 25, 2025). Unknown Worlds' summary of its last episode begins "A distress call from the Cicada repeats in the dark" (Unknown Worlds, Mar 26, 2026). In the game, Reaper Leviathan and Seamoth statues and Lost River and Sea Dragon posters are buildable nods to planet 4546B. The story stands on its own; the audio drama is optional (Wccftech). The other games are on Subnautica Games in Order.
What comes next
The roadmap promised that the next big drop "brings you the next chapter of the story" (Unknown Worlds, May 15, 2026). In the Oct 22, 2026 vlog, narrative designers Seth Dickinson and Tim Partlett and Creative Director Anthony Gallegos previewed "what's next for the Colonists' story, the growing history of the Axum" and how the update "connects back to the Collector Leviathan" (Unknown Worlds). It arrives with Early Access 2 in December 2026. Names that fan wikis give to a virus, a rebel faction or a link between the Axum and the first game's aliens are not in any official or press source, as of Nov 4, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the story of Subnautica 2? In Subnautica 2 you are a Pioneer on Alterra's colony ship Cicada, carrying 40,000 people to a new world, who wakes on an alien ocean after the voyage goes wrong and must find out what happened to the colonists who came before, guided by the ship's AI, NOA.
Where does Subnautica 2 take place? On an alien ocean world that MeinMMO and GamingBolt name the moon Proteus; the Cicada was headed for the desert planet Zezura. Unknown Worlds' own posts call it only an all-new alien world.
Is Subnautica 2's story finished? No. Subnautica 2's story is incomplete in Early Access as of Nov 4, 2026; the next chapter comes in December 2026 and the conclusion with 1.0.
Is Subnautica 2 connected to Subnautica? Yes. It shares Alterra and the first game's universe, and the Voices from Beyond audio drama features Ryley Robinson, the first game's protagonist; it is not set on planet 4546B.
Who is NOA in Subnautica 2? NOA, the "Noetic Advisor", is the Cicada's AI, spoken to at NOA Terminals; it insists the mission continue, and reviewers found it suspicious.
Do you need to play Subnautica before Subnautica 2? No. Subnautica 2's story is self-contained, though it rewards players who know Alterra and the first games.
Sources
- Subnautica 2 | Voyage to Early Access 2 - Beyond the Surface, Subnautica, Oct 22, 2026 (video)
- The ENTIRE Story Of The Colonists In Subnautica 2 (So Far), exe.plained, May 25, 2026 (video)
- Subnautica 2 Early Access Review - It Can Only Get Better Down The Line, GamingBolt, May 18, 2026 (video)
- The Subnautica 2 Story So Far - Story Explained, Wizzo, May 15, 2026 (video)
- From Creatures to Chassis - Voyage to Early Access 2, Unknown Worlds, Nov 3, 2026
- Beyond the Surface - Voyage to Early Access 2, Unknown Worlds, Oct 22, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access 1.2 - Buddy System Update, Unknown Worlds, Aug 19, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access Roadmap, Unknown Worlds, May 15, 2026
- Alterra is recruiting new Pioneers!, Unknown Worlds, May 2, 2026
- Subnautica 2 'Voices from Beyond' Episode 5 Released!, Unknown Worlds, Mar 26, 2026
- Subnautica 2 'Voices from Beyond' Episode 3 Released!, Unknown Worlds, Jan 29, 2026
- Subnautica 2 'Voices From Beyond' Episode 1 Released!, Unknown Worlds, Nov 25, 2025
- Subnautica 2, Steam store page
- Subnautica 2 Coming to Xbox Game Preview on May 14, Xbox Wire (Donya Abramo), May 4, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Story Guide, MeinMMO (Alexander Mehrwald), May 27, 2026
- Subnautica 2 Early Access Review - Waterworld, GamingBolt (Ravi Sinha), May 18, 2026
- 12 Hours With Subnautica 2, Kotaku (John Walker), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2 early access impressions, PCGamesN (Paul Kelly), May 14, 2026
- How to get past Bloom in Subnautica 2, PCGamesN (Christian Vaz), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2: Everything We Learned from Unknown Worlds, Wccftech (Alessio Palumbo), May 14, 2026
- Subnautica 2's Story Won't Be Finished At Launch, TheGamer (Sam Woods), May 1, 2026
- Subnautica 2: All 7 Biobed Inventory Expansion Locations, Game Rant (Christopher Norman Worcester), May 23, 2026
Moments
The ENTIRE Story Of The Colonists In Subnautica 2 (So Far)
exe.plained
The Subnautica 2 Story So Far - Story Explained
Wizzo
- Everyone on the mission is "printed": minds uploaded, bodies 3D printed, which is why you can change your body at any…
- NOA is not what it seems. Kotaku calls it "suspicious", insisting the mission continue (Kotaku); GamingBolt writes…
- East of the start lie the ruins of The Axum, an alien civilization that left an Observatory, a Power Plant, Metal…
Subnautica 2 Early Access Review - It Can Only Get Better Down The Line
GamingBolt
Subnautica 2 | Voyage to Early Access 2 - Beyond the Surface
Subnautica
Related
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Voices from BeyondVoices from Beyond is Subnautica 2's five-episode audio drama, released by Unknown Worlds from Nov 25, 2025 to Mar 26, 2026, about a young family in a Mongolian settlement as a threat closes in, ending with a distress call from the Cicada.
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Base PowerSubnautica 2 bases run on Solar Panels (1 to 8 energy per second by time of day), Hydroelectric Turbines in water currents, Thermal Plants by heat vents and Bioreactors burning fuel, linked by Power Transmitters and buffered by Power Storage. Without power a base makes no oxygen.
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Best Base LocationsThe guides' best base spots in Subnautica 2 are a plateau by a water current about 200 m east of the Lifepod for free turbine power, the thermal vents about 630 m east for steady Thermal Plant power, and an outpost near the Alien Ruins about 1,150 m east for the late game.
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FarmingFarming in Subnautica 2 means Growbeds, built for Titanium x1, that grow plants from a seed item such as a Pent, Lucifer Rotsac or Fibrous Pulp, and since update 1.2 Necrolei Cysts. The Metal Farm, an Axum machine, grows a chosen resource on base power.
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Anemone HillsThe Anemone Hills are Subnautica 2's biome of towering pink-and-green anemones about 300 m northwest of the Lifepod, 0 to 151 m deep, where the infected Heat Tolerance Angel Comb waits behind Bloom you clear with the Sonic Resonator.
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Coral GardensCoral Gardens and North Coral Gardens are Unknown Worlds' names for Subnautica 2's early coral areas around the Lifepod; update 1.1 (Jul 8, 2026) put a second Biolab and more Silver there, and 1.2 gave North Coral Gardens its own music.
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Dolerite SpiresThe Dolerite Spires are a maze of jagged volcanic pillars in Subnautica 2's starting region, shallow to mid depth, with Lithium and Titanium, Quaker's Meetinghouse and two Spires wrecks that All Things How lists for the High Capacity Air Tank and the Rebreather on the launch build.
See also
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Early Access 2Early Access 2 is Subnautica 2's next big content update, due in December 2026 with no day announced. Unknown Worlds promises a new region with several biomes, more of the colonists' and Axum story, new and returning creatures, a scarier Collector Leviathan, new Biomods and the Frog chassis for the Tadpole.
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The AxumThe Axum are the alien civilization of Subnautica 2, known only by what they left: ruins, an Observatory tower, a Power Plant, Metal Farms, Gateway Spires and the Rosetta Stone that makes their logograms readable once you gain the Axum Vision Adaptation. Early Access 2 in December 2026 expands their history.
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The BloomThe Bloom is Subnautica 2's infection: biofilm, sap, cankers and parasites that block caves, infect creatures and Angel Combs, and cannot be cleared by hand. You get past it with the Sonic Resonator, and the armored pink cankers need the Feedback Resonator; some places and guides call it the Blight.
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Map Edge and World TreeSubnautica 2's Early Access map ends at a striped "Early Access fence", guarded by Shiver Leviathans that kill on contact; beyond it lies out-of-bounds terrain with the giant World Tree, visible on the horizon but not reachable as of Nov 4, 2026, and since 1.2 a Tadpole destroyed out there returns inside the fence.
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CharactersSubnautica 2's characters are your silent Pioneer (six playable looks since update 1.2 added Jegna and Grace), NOA, the Cicada's Noetic Advisor AI, a second AI voice, and the vanished colonists heard only in blackbox recordings, such as Anita, Chap, Wander, Ruby, Quaker, Sophie, Nahema, Wu, Singh and Zip.
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Story WalkthroughSubnautica 2's Early Access story runs from the Lifepod and the Welcome Center through the Digestion and Heat Tolerance Angel Combs, the Tadpole Pens and the Collector Leviathan's trench to the Axum ruins, Axum Vision, the Power Plant and the Observatory, where it stops as of Nov 4, 2026; there is no ending yet.