Below Zero could have been the perfect winter horror game

When I first plunged into the icy depths of Subnautica‘s 2019 spin-off, I was absolutely hyped. The game had a simple but brilliant premise: it takes place on the same terrifying planet full of Leviathan-class creatures from Subnautica, only on the other side of the planet, where the waters are frigid, full of icebergs and frozen caves.

But this slam-dunk idea is unfortunately wasted, ruined entirely by one NPC who refuses to stop talking: Al-An. Al-An is a member of the Precursors, a high-tech race of cybernetic extraterrestrials who were largely responsible for the deadly outbreak that shapes the story of the original Subnautica. On paper, Al-An is great. He’s a fascinating character with a heartbreaking backstory, and I immediately took a liking to him. Then he started talking.

After first crossing paths with Al-An in Below Zero, he installs himself in the player’s brain. At first, I actually didn’t mind that he was constantly in my ear, sending me coordinates to investigate and sharing his backstory. He was an interesting, likable character, and more importantly, I was sure he’d soon meet an untimely end, just like every other Subnautica NPC. Al-An is warm and friendly, quickly breaking the ice between himself and the human player character, despite how vastly different they are. This would surely make his inevitable death all the more heartwrenching. The problem is Al-An never dies. The bigger problem is that he is incapable of shutting the hell up.

I was so sure Al-An would meet a horrible fate because the original Subnautica constantly reminded you that you were completely alone. After crash-landing on Planet 4546B, you get several distress signals from the passengers of various lifepods that have also survived the crash-landing. But by the time you get to them, there are no longer any survivors. One pod’s inhabitants have accidentally blown themselves up. The rest of the pods have enormous holes in them — evidence that a Leviathan likely got to their inhabitants before you could rescue them. At one point, a nearby space vessel responds to your distress call, with the captain telling you to meet him at a specific area for a pickup. Moments after you arrive at the landing site, your saviors are blown to smithereens. The message is clear: No one is coming to save you, and if you want to get off this extremely hostile planet alive, the only person you can depend on is yourself.

In contrast, Al-An’s incessant chattering shatters just about every moment of tension in Below Zero. When you’re focusing on your radar scans, listening intently for any nearby Leviathans, or simply trying to psych yourself up to take your Seatruck into a shady-looking cave, Al-An almost always has something to say. As much as I like him as a character, his constant commentary is distracting, and his warm, friendly presence completely melts the premise of what would otherwise be a tense, pulse-pounding game in which you are all alone on the frozen side of a terrifying aquatic alien planet.

Al-An’s attempts to break the ice only succeed in breaking the tension, and without that tension, Below Zero is just a below-average game about a human and a robot-alien exploring a planet full of adorable Pengwings.