Honeycomb: The World Beyond is above-ground Subnautica with bioengineering and hoverboards

23.11.2023 - 16:49 / rockpapershotgun.com

I was just pondering writing something about Subnautica, inspired by revelations that there’s a new Subnautica project on the boil, and along comes the decidedly Subnautica-esque Honeycomb: The World Beyond with a trailer. Developed by Polish team Frozen Way, whose other projects include, erm, Hairdresser Simulator, it casts you as Hennessy, a human xenobiologist who is starting afresh on the alien planet of Sota7.

As in Unknown Worlds’ survival sim, you’ll search various biomes for resources, build solar-powered habitats on stilts with nice, wide windows, and gradually amass a database of local animals and plants. Unlike in Subnautica, you won’t be constantly at risk of suffocation.

The animals come in all shapes, sizes and temperaments. There are quadrupeds with long, arched tails that look like a blend of goat and meerkat – going by the footage, they’re prone to mimicking your behaviour. There’s also a sort of hench, shaggy unicorn creature that is apparently harmless providing you don't cross its turf. Plants include spiral trees, giant Brussel sproutalikes, and amantus flowers with dangling red petals.

Honeycomb doesn’t seem to feature any direct combat or killing, though you can take damage and be afflicted by status effects such as bleeding. It wants you to care for the environment, rather than conquer it: according to the latest development update, the “most important inspiration for the game is nature and the role it plays in the survival of our planet and frankly, without bees, mankind would be gone in less than five years”. But if it doesn't let you go on a rampage, it does let you play God.

You’ll be able to crossbreed the flora, from berry trees to fungus, producing new varieties. You’ll gather and splice them together using a trowel and cutting scissors, which makes the game feel quite homely for all its sci-fi setting. You can apparently crossbreed local animals, too – they’ll do it all by themselves if left to their own devices, the saucy devils. It’s all in the name of producing and supplying miracle medications to a distant, post-apocalyptic Earth. Or at least, that’s what you’re told by your bosses at EON Corp.

It’s hard to tell whether Honeycomb’s premise of being a botanically-minded pioneer makes room for any commentary on real-life colonisation or selective breeding. The Steam page copy suggests not. According to the last devblog, Hennessy’s “time is now, and the world is full of new things for her to discover. It's time to embrace this boundless space, leaving behind her symbolic cradle.” Which sounds very Manifest Destiny to me.

Amongst other things, I'm interested to know whether you can release bioengineered species into the wilds, and whether they will gradually