Depth Levels



Depth is one of the main HUD indicators and is central to navigating the Seamoth, Cyclops, and Prawn Suit in Subnautica.

Depth also has an impact on Seabases: Hull Integrity is affected by adding a multiplier to base modules with a negative integrity. Solar Panels become less effective in deeper waters, as well.

Depth is currently only measured underwater - if the player's position is above sea level, the indicator will still show as 0 meters.

Around 3000 meters the world cuts off and gives way to the void.

Player Depth
Currently, the player can go to greater depths than the crush depth of their vehicles without taking damage. However, the player depletes oxygen faster as they go deeper. For example, referring to the graph below, in the 'white' zone (0m-99m) the player will lose 1 oxygen every second. In the 'yellow' zone, the player loses 2 oxygen every second (100-199), and in red, the player loses 3 oxygen every second (200+). This is mitigated by equipping a Rebreather.

Crush Depth Stages
There are currently three stages of depth. The indicator will change color if it passes to another stage. Each stage affects vehicles in different ways.

When the vehicle is in the safe zone, the depth will be displayed in white text and will not normally take damage.

When it goes past the safety depth, the computer system will warn the player that they are leaving the safe zone, and the text will be in yellow. Bumping into solid objects can cause damage to the vehicle.

When the Cyclops goes past the crush depth, the computer system will warn the player that hull damage is imminent. The player then has a few seconds to turn back to avoid damage. In the Seamoth and Prawn Suit, the vehicle will take damage and start cracking. In the Cyclops, the hull will start to spring leaks and water will fill the interior, which will drag the Cyclops down further if not taken care of. The player then has to turn back, as attempts to repair the damage past the crush depth will be futile.

It is possible to increase a vehicle's maximum depth using Upgrades.

Future Plans
In the future, Depth will be important to watch, as going up too quickly will hurt the player. Using console command "nitrogen" will activate this even if it's a work in progress.

Speculation
As Depth has many effects outside the Subnautica universe, it might well be that it will affect more things in future builds, such as for example the player's health or usage of Oxygen.

Trivia

 * If the player swims past 500m in depth, they will start breathing faster, to reflect the pressure making it harder for them to breathe properly at this depth. This happens even with the Rebreather equipped, but doesn't affect oxygen usage (Assuming the Rebreather is equipped).