portion Subnautica 2 In recent online discussions, players are unhappy with the game's unkillable fish. Complaints about Immortal Fauna appear to have come from a small number of early adopters; Subnautica 2 Despite this, the community claims that the inability to kill fish reduces immersion and offers few positive aspects.
Although Subnautica The game has never lacked for scary creatures and has always been designed to be a primarily pacifistic experience. Small fish could be caught for food and crafting, but larger predators and leviathans mostly acted as environmental hazards. Although killing them was technically possible, there was no direct reward and lethal tools were extremely limited, so most players were encouraged to avoid combat rather than pursue it. For this or other reasons, Unknown Worlds Entertainment has completely removed the ability to kill fauna from: Subnautica 2.

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Subnautica 2 Early Access Players Are Annoyed by Unkillable Animals
just a few days later Subnautica 2Following the May 14 release of , some players have already expressed frustration with the developer's decision to make larger fauna unkillable. Reddit user DinosAndBearsOhMy claimed that although he never went out of his way to kill fish in the original game, this change makes the game world feel less believable. SubnauticaThe sequel's immortal creatures still undermine immersion. The post received over 2,600 upvotes and appeared on the front page of r/Subnautica on May 15. This suggests that this view is shared by some parts of the community.
Subnautica 2 might not get thermal blades
Several fans detailed their immersion complaints in the ensuing discussion, arguing that playing as a complete pacifist who kills only for food is somewhat at odds with the premise of surviving on a hostile alien planet. “I don’t really like the idea of being eaten alive,” one player wrote, adding that his character should at least be able to go down the swing. Another fan suggested that making fauna unkillable would also reduce the chances of: Subnautica 2 Add thermal blades. In the original Subnautica and below zeroThat sword upgrade allows players to instantly kill and cook small fish with a single attack, as well as double as a powerful weapon against larger aquatic creatures. Since damage is no longer a factor, the need for this becomes less obvious. Subnautica 2 Includes this fan-favorite utility.
The unkillable fauna has proven to be a somewhat controversial design decision, but Unknown Worlds Entertainment hasn't exactly inspired fans to change. Developers hope that Leviathan and other larger creatures will Subnautica 2. Although I haven't yet delved into the train of thought behind this design change, one clear effect is that Immortal Fauna makes hostile ecosystems less “solvable” in a sense, forcing players to adapt to threats rather than simply eliminate them. These considerations may be particularly relevant in the following respects: Subnautica 2's built-in co-op allowed the group to take on major predators like Reaper-style Leviathan with an AI that could only track one target at a time with much ease.
Current complaints about the Immortal Fish still seem to be coming from a small number of players. Looking at the bigger picture, Subnautica 2The early access launch was very successful, with Unknown Worlds Entertainment reporting 2 million units sold in the first 12 hours, despite the game also being available to Xbox Game Pass subscribers from day one.


- released
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May 14, 2026
- ESRB
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Anyone over 10 years old / language, fantasy violence