Believe it or not, the original Subnautica (2018) actually included basic PC VR support well before its 1.0 launch. With its long-awaited sequel coming out this week though, you probably shouldn’t hold your breath waiting for official VR support.
Unknown Worlds Entertainment is releasing Subnautica 2 in early access on May 14th, which, as we’ve heard for years now, won’t include any official VR support of any kind.
As far back at game’s 2024 FAQ, the studio said adding VR support to Subnautica 2 “seems unlikely.”
Striking more of a conciliatory tone, the game’s Creative Producer Scott MacDonald more recently said this in a developer Q&A last summer:
“While we’re big fans of VR, and I have loads of headsets myself, we’re not currently working on VR support, but who knows what could happen in the future.”
Notably, the original Subnautica got rudimentary Oculus Rift DK2 support just one week after its early access launch in 2014, and even launched on Oculus Home in 2016 alongside the first consumer Oculus Rift.
Still, the game’s VR implementation left much to be desired, feeling unfinished, especially by today’s standards. Despite being extremely atmospheric and (at times) pretty immersive, it ultimately lacks many of the native VR touches you’d expect for more than a quick jaunt, such as awkward UI, weak controller support, and performance problems abound, requiring mods to get into a sufficiently playable state.
What’s more, Unknown Worlds Entertainment hasn’t shown any real signs of interest in building out first-party VR support for any of its games beyond the first Subnautica; the studio’s first big follow-up, Subnautica: Below Zero (2021), was even released at the height of the COVID-19 VR boom—the same year Facebook rebranded to Meta—but never gained official VR support.
There is still hope though that you’ll be able to jump into the deep waters of Subnautica 2 in VR. Because it’s being built in Unreal Engine 5, VR injector tools like Praydog’s UEVR are probably going to be your best bet while waiting (possibly indefinitely) for official VR support. Community-sourced settings usually crop up closely after launch too, like we saw with Bethesda’s remaster of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion last year.
Early access also means we can expect more features over the course of the next two to three years, as the studio says it will likely be that long before we see an official 1.0 release, although official VR implementation doesn’t look likely at this point. Whatever the case, we’ll have our eyes peeled for mods and more tips on how to play Subnautica 2 in VR.
