New ocean, same kettle of fish Image credit: Krafton / Rock Paper Shotgun Like the original Subnautica , released into early access an unnecessarily long time ago in 2014, Subnautica 2 pumps fresh life into the often-grindy survival genre by depriving it of air. Out in early access today, it's a familiar but engrossing meditation on ocean exploration, with a backstory that inclines towards the abyssal dread of SOMA . You begin the game as a crash-landed space colonist, downloaded into a 3D-printed body by "Noa", a softly overbearing corporate AI. Your goal as Noa's "Qualified Investigator" is to work out why your ship crashed, and what happened to all the other colonists Noa revived before you. You have 45 seconds of air to work with, at first. That's enough to get you down to the seabed near your floating lifepod, where you can scrounge a few reproachful slugs to convert into potable water, and rip some titanium chunks from the sand. You might also peek into a cave.…