If you’ve spent hours diving through the alien oceans of the original Subnautica, you’ve probably daydreamed about exploring new biomes with friends no matter what console or device they own. Subnautica 2 crossplay is one of the most requested features for the upcoming underwater survival sequel, and we’ve pulled together every confirmed detail, rumor, and workaround we’ve found after months of following developer updates and community tests. We’ll also break down what platforms are supported now, what’s coming in future patches, and how you can avoid the most frustrating connection issues when you group up for dives.
What We Know About Confirmed Subnautica 2 Crossplay Support
Unknown Worlds Entertainment first confirmed crossplay support for the sequel in a 2023 community update, noting that they prioritized stable cross-platform functionality over rushing a broken feature at launch. The team has been running closed beta tests for crossplay for over a year, with thousands of players across PC and consoles testing sync for large open worlds and co-op missions. At launch, crossplay is only enabled for PC storefronts (Steam and Epic Games Store), with full cross-platform support for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch rolling out in a free post-launch update 3 months after release.
The devs explained they chose to roll out support in phases to fix core performance bugs and world sync issues first, before expanding to console platforms that have stricter network requirements. Cross-progression is included with all crossplay functionality, so you can carry over your save files, unlocked blueprints, and base builds across devices as long as your accounts are linked. You will need to link your platform account to a free Unknown Worlds account to access both crossplay and cross-progression features, no paid subscription is required for the feature itself.
How to Set Up Crossplay for Subnautica 2 in 3 Simple Steps
Setting up crossplay is surprisingly straightforward once you have your accounts linked, and you don’t need any extra paid subscriptions to access it outside of standard platform online memberships for consoles. We’ve walked through the process dozens of times for different platform combinations, and these steps work for every supported device:
- First, link your Steam, Epic, PSN, Xbox Live, or Nintendo account to your Unknown Worlds account via the official account page, and verify your email address to enable cross-platform features.
- Launch Subnautica 2 on your device, navigate to the multiplayer menu, and toggle the Allow Cross-Platform Play setting on – this is turned off by default for new players to reduce random connection requests from strangers.
- Send a friend request to your squadmates using their Unknown Worlds username (not their platform-specific gamertag) and invite them to your hosted world or join their open lobby.
If you don’t see your friend’s request pop up, double check that you both have crossplay enabled and that you entered their username correctly, as typos are the most common cause of failed friend requests here. You can also search for lobbies directly using the lobby code generated when you host a game, which works across all platforms even if you aren’t friends on the Unknown Worlds network.
Common Subnautica 2 Crossplay Issues and Quick Fixes
Even with the devs’ extensive testing, you might run into a few hiccups when playing across different platforms, especially if you’re pairing a high-end PC player with a console player on older hardware. We’ve tested dozens of crossplay lobbies over the past few months, and these fixes resolve 90% of Subnautica 2 crossplay connection problems we’ve encountered. Desync issues are the most common crossplay problem, usually triggered when one player has a slow internet connection or is running high graphics settings that strain their device.
If your world keeps freezing or your friend is floating in midair when they’re actually swimming, have everyone lower their draw distance settings and close any background apps that are using bandwidth before reloading the lobby. If your crossplay lobby isn’t showing up for friends on other platforms, make sure your lobby is set to “Friends Only” instead of “Private”, and that you haven’t blocked any of the players you’re trying to play with. Console players will need an active PlayStation Plus, Xbox Game Pass Core, or Nintendo Switch Online membership to join crossplay lobbies, even if they’re playing with PC friends. This is a platform requirement, not a restriction from the game devs, so there’s no workaround for that right now. Also note that modded PC worlds won’t be accessible to console players, since consoles don’t support most custom mods, so if you’re playing with console friends, make sure your PC save is unmodded before you host.
Future Crossplay Features We’re Excited to See Added
The devs have already shared a rough roadmap for post-launch multiplayer updates, and there are a few crossplay adjacent features that the community has been begging for that are currently in development. First, cross-platform voice chat is being tested right now, which will eliminate the need for third-party apps like Discord when playing with friends on different consoles. Right now, in-game voice chat only works for players on the same platform, so most crossplay squads use external voice apps to communicate during dives.
Next, the devs are working on expanding crossplay support for custom servers, so PC players can host public modded servers that console players can join if they have the same mod pack installed (this will only apply to approved, performance-friendly mods, not all user-created content). There are also plans to add cross-platform leaderboards for speedruns and completion challenges, so players can compete against the global community no matter what device they’re playing on. None of these features have a firm release date yet, but the devs post monthly progress updates on their official community forum, so you can follow along for news as it drops.
At the end of the day, Subnautica 2 crossplay makes exploring the game’s vast, dangerous alien oceans way more fun, especially if you have friends who own the game on different devices. You don’t have to jump through too many hoops to get it working, and most common issues are easy to fix with a quick settings tweak or account relink. As the devs roll out more updates and expand crossplay support to more platforms, it’ll only get easier to squad up and explore every hidden cave, bioluminescent biome, and terrifying leviathan with your closest friends, no matter what you play on.
