Pilot a remotely operated submarine and explore the oceans! Take on contracts to chart unknown regions, sample hydrothermal vents and study new species – all while defying the darkness and crushing pressure of the deeps. You will chart unknown regions, sample hydrothermal vents, find ship wrecks and study aquatic species along the water column.

You are in complete control of every aspect of the dive that you embark on, from navigating an oceanic research vessel, to deploying and operating a full-ocean-depth rated ROV equipped with an array of advanced tools.

Begin as a trainee and earn your certificate to become a full-fledged pilot and take on a series of contracts to explore and discover the many fascinating sights and mysteries of the deep ocean.

Developer sqr3lab is breaching from the ocean to announce that its deep-sea exploration simulation game subROV: Underwater Discoveries is now available on Steam Early Access.

subROV: Underwater Discoveries is developed by former Frontier Software developer and sound designer José Luis González Castro, with support from the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences and the Schmidt Ocean Institute, and with partial funding from a National Science Foundation BIO-OCE grant. The game is inspired by José’s search for a novel setting to tinker with sound design and his fascination with ocean exploration. José quickly realized there was a Marianas Trench-sized gap in the simulation genre, and set out to create a game that could capture the wonder he felt, and show people what lies beneath the surface of our oceans.

“It’s wonderful to finally share this project with players,” said José Luis González Castro, Founder of sqr3lab. “While this Early Access launch is just the beginning for subROV, I hope players are able to come away from it with the same intrigue and fascination for ocean exploration that I have had for so many years.”

“subROV releases into Early access with a series of tutorials and 5 dive locations. You can complete the dives’ objectives and explore the sites to see what creatures and features you find. Please keep in mind that work in the game is still in progress, and therefore subject to change. We’ve worked very hard to make sure the game is stable and free of bugs, but if you experience any issues please send us feedback so we can look into them. We think subROV is already enjoyable and we’re excited for you to play it!”

“During Early Access, we plan to add the following features and content:

• New dive sites
• New creatures/variations of existing creatures (corals)
• More wrecks/finds to explore
• Improvements to creatures’ behaviors and interactions
• New activities involving the ROV and external devices, e.g. sampling methane seeps, or finding and retrieving lost buoys in the water column
• Interface improvements during the dives (ROV camera orientation indicators, ROV camera zoom, more information on scannable items)

We also would like to try several other features, such as

• Retrieving and deploying objects from the ship using a crane
• Completely detaching the ROV from the tether to explore freely in short range (caves, wrecks)
• Adding a home base with a huge pool to test the ROV and take on challenges
• ROV Damage model

Key Features:

• Sim-ply Submarining: Take control of an oceanographic vessel, complete with a full-ocean-depth rated ROV, and an array of advanced tools including sonar, AI-assisted scanner, articulated arm, temperature sensors, landers, sediment corers, and other scientific equipment.
• Choose Your Own Ocean Adventure: Every dive tells a story. Each dive has loose objectives, but you're always able to explore freely to your heart's content
• Ocean Master(y): The ocean is full of mysteries waiting to be discovered! Rendezvous with ocean buoys and download scientific data and information on new points of interest. Build up your findings gallery, gain experience from completing objectives, and climb your way up the ranks from trainee to Dive Master!
• Creatures of the Deep: From black corals to glass sponges, chimaeras to sperm whales, there are dozens of aquatic life forms to encounter and study! Each one is accurately modeled — with many being brought to a videogame for the first time ever — to make the diving experience as true to life as possible.

subROV : Underwater Discoveries is coming to PC (Steam) in 2023.