Unknown Worlds, the grassroots indie team known for the Natural Selection Games, has announced its next title, a distinct project titled Subnautica. The initial outline describes the game as an "open world underwater exploration and construction game", further explained as combining elements of role player, sandbox, exploration and cinematic games, and according to the developer: is a genre they 'do not believe has yet been invented'.

We have assembled a small team, and are in the early stages of prototyping Subnautica gameplay. The first in-game art assets are being created, soundscapes are being recorded, and animations are starting to slither, turn and swim. We have created a rich library of concept art, and set about designing and iterating on core elements of gameplay. Subnautica is not in ‘alpha,’ it is an idea that is just starting to be mouled into its first playable incarnations. We are not ready to announce it and try to ‘build buzz’ or ‘attract attention’ – But we are ready, and excited, to share our work with you.

Subnautica aims to elicit a feeling of experiencing the unknown: A sense that you are exploring an untouched world, not knowing how far, or how deep you can go. The underwater environment will invite you to construct submarines and develop your equipment in order to reach its far flung and diverse corners. Decisions you make about vessel layout, capabilities and structure will affect your ability to navigate hazards and enter the domains of creatures; the likes of which your imagination has never conceived of.

The creation of Subnautica will be extremely open. We hope everyone in the Unknown Worlds community, and new faces, will be interested in giving feedback, sharing ideas, and participating in development. You can talk to most of the development team on Twitter and on the Subnautica forums. We will be opening up early Subnautica ‘builds’ (versions of the game) to a wider and wider audience over the coming months, and you will be invited to play.

A few pieces of concept artwork and a developer video touching on studio philosophy of the project have been released, as well as three soundtrack samplers: Ahead Slow, Finding Life, and Into The Unknown.

Take a closer look below, and head over to unknownworlds.com/subnautica for the full scoop.