A new cinematic trailer for Subnautica 2 has been officially released, and at the end of it, we finally see the early access release date for the upcoming open-world survival game.
The most wishlisted game on Steam as of April 2026, Subnautica 2 has been highly anticipated for years, but up until now, we had no idea when developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment was going to be releasing the game.
Now, thanks to the new trailer, we know Subnautica 2 is launching into early access on May 14, 2026. The early access version of the game will be available on PC via Steam and Epic Games, as well as on Xbox Series X|S. There’s no word yet on when a PlayStation 5 version could arrive.
While the cinematic trailer was largely for entertainment purposes and didn’t show any gameplay, we did see some of the mechanics and features coming in Subnautica 2. The trailer immediately showcased the new co-op addition, which allows you to play the entire game with a group of other players—a thing you could only accomplish through the use of mods so far.
The trailer also gave us a sneak peek at some of the deadly creatures that await players under the ocean surface, including a sleek and agile fish that shoots spear-like objects out of its mouth. It also looks like more time will be spent above the water in Subnautica 2, as the trailer focused on a large, mysterious structure poking out of the water.
Of course, with this just being the initial stages of early access, players can expect more content to be added to the game over time. And it appears as though the developers are now fully focused on Subnautica 2 following a lengthy legal battle with their publisher.
Subnautica 2, a sequel to both Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero, has been the subject of some controversy during its development time. Unknown Worlds Entertainment, the original creators of the franchise, have had public issues with its publisher, Krafton, over the past year. Krafton unceremoniously fired the CEO of Unknown Worlds Entertainment, Ted Gill, and other executives in 2025 to avoid paying a hefty bonus to the development studio.
However, a judge recently forced Krafton to rehire Gill and the fired executives, finding that the company had knowingly breached its agreement with the studio. Now, Gill and Unknown Worlds Entertainment are still pushing ahead with the development of Subnautica 2.
However, in the cinematic trailer released today, Krafton is not listed as the publisher. According to a new report from Eurogamer, developers at Unknown Worlds stated that Krafton is “not not the publisher anymore.” It remains to be seen what involvement, if any, Krafton has with Subnautica 2 moving forward into its early access phase.
