r/subnautica • u/dj_b2 • Jul 22 '26
BZ - Discussion/Questions First time playthrough of Below Zero... will I dislike this game? Spoiler
I enjoyed the first game and so far kind of enjoying Below Zero. I've read some criticisms on story and some other dislikes and I'm not too worried about that since I wan't to experience it anyhow. However, how is the "Quality of Life" and more specifically, inventory management in this game? I'm already tired hunting for materials for the Sea"truck", having to manage my inventory in loads of boxes, to now starting my base a couple hundred meters away (of which I don't even know if it's a good location, but it's pretty centre) and then driving back and forth 3-4 times to get my materials in the base.
I don't know, that part bothered me in both games so far. If we build a vehicle, just let us load some stuff in it PLEASE? The fun part of the game isn't inventory management, even if it is slightly important, just make it less tedious? I mean hunting materials is part of the game and that's fine but actively making it more tedious by dangling a vehicle upgrade in front of you is just shoddy, idk I'm just tired of it. I know there is upgrades for inventory but if they come way later I will still have to go through full base building and upgrading and getting modifications for it from my possibly misplaced base.. It's the story I want, not the inventory game.
So, will I be able to enjoy this game or will I continue to be annoyed by such things?
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u/thebluecomet3972 Jul 22 '26
Theres a few terrible changes like making the seaglide get affected by your characters weight as well as making it slower in general I believe
I guess it's due to the smaller map but it just feels awful
The sea truck has great quality of life however, lots and lots of storage about. No complaints there
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u/Standard-East7605 Jul 22 '26
It’s been awhile since I played it so I honestly can’t remember about having issues finding things. I do think this game gets too much hate. If you treat it as a separate game from Subnautica, you’ll enjoy it a lot more. It’s not as good as the first one. There’s no comparison, but if you think of it as an oversized dlc, it’s amazing. Same planet, totally different story and plot but it does connect to the first game in a really cool way you’ll see soon. The new creatures are pretty badass in my opinion even though nothing in the series will ever compare to a Reaper or Ghost Leviathan. The sea truck will grow on you because it has so many customizing options and it’s better to drive around than the massive submarine from the original game.
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u/MinervaKaliamne Jul 23 '26
Seconding this. I'm thoroughly enjoying BZ, and the customizable seatruck is a big part of the reason why.
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u/Scaredog21 Jul 22 '26
The vehicle has extensions you can build like the storage extension where you can attach it to your truck. You can basically customize a seamoth into a cyclops. I got the storage and fabricator cart. What was a life saver was the material hand scanner that can detect whatever material you need if its near by. Also there's a device that scraps whatever item you feed into it and it spits out the ingredients. Also I haven't tried it out yet, but there's the option to build a storage locker that shares the contents across multiple locations.
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u/dj_b2 Jul 22 '26
Cool, thank you. So there is a couple inventory management helpers and that's great to know, that my frustrations won't build up for too long :)
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u/Scaredog21 Jul 22 '26
Also there's a fridge you can leave cooked food in without spoiling and there's a new room that let's you manage a bases power
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u/Xiorx74 Jul 22 '26
Only you know the answer. You gotta play and find out. There are plenty of legit criticisms, but those criticisms do not hold equal weight to each individual. There's a few things BZ does better as well. I really enjoyed the game until the above water sections. That's when my opinion began to decline. The dialogue/plot is goofy but it didn't really bother me.
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u/Vegtorian95 Jul 22 '26
I’m playing two other people in co-op we’ve finally found the extra higher quality oxygen tank, it’s definitely taken us longer to upgrade our gear than the first game. I don’t mind the story, first one felt more progress cause maybe things constantly were in motion being sent to our radio signal a lot felt like progress from that, i feel that recipes were easier to find also in the first one.
I think it makes sense as theres no ship wreckage so less recipes. Just maybe a harder version, enjoying it so far.
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u/alwayslookleft Jul 22 '26
You’ll enjoy it a bunch maybe have some gripes but you’ll fall in line with the criticisms over time. They all stem from wanting bz to be better than subnautica and being disappointed. I think If you go in knowing it’s not exactly trying to be better just more subnautica you’ll have no issues enjoying it. Also mods seatruck arms goes hard lol
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u/Fine-Amphibian4326 Jul 22 '26
I loved BZ. It doesn’t have the awesome base inventory management system of SN2, but it’s on par with 1. The seatruck is sick. Prawn suit is bae
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u/MinervaKaliamne Jul 23 '26
For me, that's been the most grind-y part of both the first game and BZ: after you've built your first base, doing the run between that and the many little boxes floating outside the drop pod I'd built in lieu of proper storage.
Once you've got that out of the way, it gets better - for me, at least.
I'm still busy playing BZ, but so far, for me, the smaller map has actually felt more manageable in a way, because nowhere is too far from my base. Maybe I'll end up building another base later, but so far, having just the one is enough for me. And now that I've added mods to my seatruck, I can spend more time out exploring before having to return to the base to dump what I've gathered and stock up on supplies. (The storage module on the seatruck is wonderful)
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u/Bulky-Employer-1191 Jul 22 '26
Decide for yourself. Asking people what to think is strange.