Waterslug

The Waterslug is a new creature in Subnautica 2, and one of the first new fauna species to be teased for the game. It was revealed through a creative alternate reality game (ARG) by Unknown Worlds Entertainment that used the Time Capsule system from the original Subnautica to deliver hidden clues to players.

The Time Capsule ARG

Starting in July 2024, developers at Unknown Worlds began planting Time Capsules in the original Subnautica. Time Capsules are player-created messages that can be found by other players in their own playthroughs, a system that creates an asynchronous connection between the game's community.

The developer-planted Time Capsules were unusual. Each one contained a close-up screenshot showing a portion of an unfamiliar creature that did not exist in the original Subnautica or Below Zero. These images were highly zoomed-in, showing only fragments of the creature's body, making it difficult to determine what the full animal looked like.

Players in the Subnautica community began discovering these capsules and sharing the images online. The screenshots generated speculation about what kind of creature was being shown, whether it was related to Subnautica 2 (which had not yet been officially announced at the time of the earliest capsules), and what the overall pattern might mean.

Decoding the name

Each Time Capsule planted by the developers was associated with specific numbers. Community members eventually realized that when these numbers were converted from hexadecimal to ASCII text, they spelled out the word "WATERSLUG". This hexadecimal encoding served as both the creature's name reveal and a puzzle for the community to solve collaboratively.

Developer Scott MacDonald confirmed the name "Waterslug" on the Steam forums after community members successfully decoded the message, validating the ARG's solution and acknowledging the community's detective work.

Significance

The Waterslug ARG was notable for several reasons. It was one of the earliest concrete teases of new Subnautica 2 content, arriving before the game's official announcement at the Xbox Partner Showcase in October 2024. It also demonstrated Unknown Worlds' willingness to use their existing games as a platform for marketing and community engagement.

The use of the Time Capsule system was particularly fitting, as it repurposed one of the original Subnautica's most beloved community features for a new purpose. Time Capsules were originally designed to let players leave messages and items for strangers to find, creating surprise moments of connection. Using them to tease a sequel was a natural extension of that idea.

Creature details

Beyond the close-up screenshots embedded in the Time Capsules, limited information about the Waterslug's full appearance, size, behavior, and habitat has been officially released. The ARG images showed fragments of the creature's body but not enough to reconstruct its complete form with certainty.

As a creature inhabiting Planet Zezura, the Waterslug is part of the game's alien ecosystem. Like other fauna, it is likely scannable and may be a target for the Biosampler as part of the DNA adaptation system.

The creature's name suggests a slug-like aquatic organism, though the precise relationship between the name and the creature's actual anatomy and locomotion remains to be confirmed through in-game encounters.

Note: Full creature details, including biome location, behavior patterns, and gameplay mechanics, have not been officially confirmed. This article will be updated as more information is revealed.