If you’ve spent hours diving through Subnautica’s alien 4546B oceans, fending off reaper leviathans and crafting underwater bases, or battling for control of alien-infested outposts in Natural Selection 2’s tense 12v12 multiplayer matches, you’ve probably wondered how are Subnautica and Natural Selection 2 related. You aren’t alone — thousands of players have spotted subtle design quirks, shared sound effects, and even hidden Easter eggs that hint at a deep connection between the two wildly different titles. I’ve dug through years of developer interviews, scoured community forums for hidden finds, and even tested cross-game references myself to break down exactly how these two games are linked, beyond just being beloved indie hits from the same era.
How Are Subnautica and Natural Selection 2 Related at the Development Level?
The most obvious link between the two games is their shared developer, Unknown Worlds Entertainment. The studio was founded by Charlie Cleveland in 2002, and its first major commercial release was Natural Selection 2 in 2012, after almost a decade of work on the original Natural Selection mod and its sequel. After NS2 launched to critical and commercial success, the team wanted to experiment with a smaller, non-competitive project as a side venture, and that experimental prototype eventually became Subnautica. The entire core studio leadership worked on both titles, so their design DNA is inherently linked. Lead designers, sound engineers, and art directors who built NS2’s alien world and combat systems all moved over to work on Subnautica full time once the prototype gained traction. Subnautica’s modified Spark Engine is built directly off the version they refined for Natural Selection 2 over 6 years of post-launch updates. That shared engine is why you’ll notice similar physics, lighting, and even UI quirks across both games, even if they look completely different at first glance. The team didn’t have to build a new engine from scratch for Subnautica, so they could focus all their energy on perfecting the survival gameplay and alien ocean setting.
Shared Design Philosophy That Carries Across Both Titles
Even though one game is a team-based competitive shooter and the other is a single-player open world survival game, they share core design values that the Unknown Worlds team has stuck to for decades. Both games prioritize immersive, unscripted player experiences over linear storytelling. NS2 matches play out completely differently every single time, with no set path to victory — a team can win by overwhelming the enemy early with fast melee units, or hold out for late-game tech to turn the tide. Subnautica works the same way: you can explore the entire map in any order you want, with no forced missions or cutscenes pushing you in a specific direction. You can beat the game without ever building a base, or spend 100 hours building underwater outposts and never touch the main story. You might also notice that both games have a very similar approach to difficulty scaling. Neither game throws impossible challenges at you out of nowhere, but they also don’t hold your hand if you make a mistake. Die in NS2 because you pushed an alien hive alone, and you’ll have to wait to respawn, losing any upgraded gear you had. Die in Subnautica because you ran out of oxygen 300 meters below the surface, and you’ll lose all the resources you were carrying unless you can make it back to your death point quickly. That consistent risk-reward loop is a direct carryover from the team’s design playbook they built while working on NS2.
Hidden Cross-Game Easter Eggs and Lore Ties
The most fun links between the two games are the hidden lore connections and Easter eggs that the team tucked away for dedicated fans to find. The biggest lore link is the shared universe both games exist in, which most players don’t even realize exists. The Kharaa plague that turns humans into alien hosts in NS2 is the exact same pathogen that wiped out the Precursors and infects the player in Subnautica. The studio confirmed this connection in a 2021 developer interview, stating that the two games take place in the same interstellar universe, thousands of years apart. There are dozens of small Easter eggs scattered across both games that reference each other, including these fan-favorite finds:
Overlapping Community and Modding Ecosystems
Because both games run on the same modified Spark Engine, their modding communities are almost entirely overlapping, with many creators making content for both titles. The same modding tools used to create custom NS2 maps, character skins, and game modes are also used to make custom biomes, creatures, and story mods for Subnautica. The learning curve for the toolkit is identical for both games, so modders don’t have to learn new software to switch between creating content for either title. I’ve used the same modding toolkit to make a simple custom NS2 team deathmatch map and a small Subnautica passive creature mod, and I only had to go through one tutorial to be able to work on both. The official Unknown Worlds Discord server has dedicated channels for both games, so thousands of players are active in both communities. The studio often runs cross-game community events, like a 2023 challenge where players had to find all the NS2 Easter eggs in Subnautica to win free NS2 DLC and exclusive Subnautica in-game skins. The team also tests new quality of life features on both communities before rolling them out: the improved inventory management UI added to Subnautica in 2022 was first tested with NS2 players for 3 months to make sure it was intuitive for both casual and hardcore players.
It’s easy to write off the little similarities between the two games as coincidence, but once you dig into the details, it’s clear how are Subnautica and Natural Selection 2 related on nearly every level, from their shared development roots to their interconnected lore and community spaces. You don’t have to be a super fan of both titles to appreciate the care the team put into linking these two very different experiences, and next time you play either, keep an eye out for the little hidden references you might have missed before. If you haven’t tried the other game yet, it’s well worth picking up to see all the shared touches for yourself.
