History Awesome / Subnautica

* The sequel confirms that, thanks to Ryley curing the bio-plague, life on 4546B is now flourishing again and the environment is recovering rapidly. Yes, that's right, without the ''murderous rapidly spreading plague'', nature has settled itself back into its normal eco-system. Sure, that eco-system is full of ''massive leviathans and ice worms and repears and sea dragons'', but its a normal one once again.

* The sequel confirms that, thanks to Ryley curing the bio-plague, life on 4546B is now flourishing again and the environment is recovering rapidly.

* A posthumous one for the ''Mercury II'''s captain, for managing to ''dodge'' the Enforcement Platform's attack and land her vessel intact on 4546B. Sure, her feat proved futile in the end, but it's something the commanding officers of the ''Degasi'', ''Aurora'', and ''Sunbeam'' botched entirely.

* Getting aboard the ''Aurora'' and sealing the leaking drive module that is hemorrhaging radiation. This requires the player to have found the blueprints for and built a number of tools to remove obstacles aboard the damaged ship, braved radiation and edged perilously close to areas frequented by Reaper Leviathans, fought their way past Cave Crawlers, and finally braved the Bleeder-infested waters of the flooded drive core to repair the ''Aurora'''s damaged engines. It is a major early to mid-game accomplishment, frees up the player's exploration by no longer requiring the radiation suit, and [[GameplayAndStorySegregation lore-wise]] averts an ecological catastrophe.

* The sequel confirms that, thanks to Ryley curing the bio-plague, life on 4546B is now flourishing again and the environment is now recovering rapidly.

** Adding one more bit of awesome? The bio-plague that gets cured during the course of the game also means humanity now has a lead on a way to halt the spread of the Kharaa bacterium-based aliens in ''VideoGame/NaturalSelection2'', which shares a universe with ''Subnautica''. That janitor managed to help stop an interstellar war, knowingly or not! That is.. unless they refused to overlook his 1 trillion debt long enough to realize he discovered it.

** Managing to actually kill any of the aggressive Leviathans with a PRAWN. It's not easy, and not intended ...but the utter satisfaction of slaying one for all the paranoia and fears it caused you is one of the greatest things you can experience. And if done, that specific one will ''never'' respawn; the limitless power tagline wasn't just for show.

* The game really doesn't encourage it, but any creature ''can'' be killed. And yes, this does include taking down Reaper, Ghost, and Sea Dragon Leviathans with anything from a prawn suit with a drill arm to your dinky little knife, and better still, [[KilledOffForReal they don't respawn]] so you're rewarded with never having to worry about them again.
** One of the most dramatic methods is a Prawn Suit equipped with a grappling hook arm and either a drill or just a bare fist. Fire the hook and latch onto your target. The creature's AI [[AIBreaker will completely lose its shit]] and it will thrash about wildly, even leaving its normal habitat if it can in an attempt to escape you, all while you hang off of its side and continue punching or drilling it. Correctly done, even the Reaper and Sea Dragon will be too occupied trying to shake you off to properly attack your suit.

* Marguerit Maida's DyingMomentOfAwesome, riding out with a seaglide and a piece of scrap to kill the Reaper that destroyed her seabase. The last Paul saw her, she had the scrap lodged in its neck and wasn't letting go despite its best efforts.

** Managing to actually kill a Reaper Leviathan with a PRAWN. It's not easy, and not intended ...but the utter satisfaction of slaying one for all the paranoia and fears it caused you is one of the greatest things you can experience. And if done, that specific one will ''never'' respawn.
*** Actually you can do this to every Leviathan creature in the game. This shows that the limitless power tagline wasn't just for show.
* The protagonist (a man with no previous experience piloting submarines) managing to operate the Cyclops (a vessel designed to be operated by a 3-man crew), ''[[CrewOfOne all by himself]]''. The PDA outright states this should only be attempted by the most veteran of pilots, and he does it on his ''first try''.

* Your first face to face with the Sea Emperor Leviathan goes from heart stopping to outright ''awe inspiring'' once you realize it isn't hostile and that she's the creature that's been talking to you for sometime.
--> "Are you here to play?"

* The [[MiniMecha PRAWN Suit]], an undersea walker capable of withstanding pressures up to 900m without upgrades. Not only that, its arms can be replaced with useful implements ranging from telekinetic beams to torpedo launchers. As if that wasn't enough, the PDA states that PRAWN pilots must undergo weeks of training to counteract [[NewAbilityAddiction the feeling of limitless power one gets from using the suit]], and the protagonist manages to get by with nothing but their own self-discipline. It probably helps that by this time the player has encountered [[NightmareFuel Reapers]], who will literally chew up and spit out a PRAWN, and then chew up and swallow the player as usual.
** Managing to actually kill a Reaper Leviathan with a PRAWN. It's not easy, and not intended ...but the utter satisfaction of slaying one for all the paranoia and fears it caused you is one of the greatest things you can experience.

* The protagonist (a man with no previous experience piloting submarines) managing to operate the Cyclops (a vessel designed to be operated by a 3-man crew), ''[[CrewOfOne all by himself.]]'' The PDA outright states this should only be attempted by the most veteran of pilots, and he does it on his ''first try''.

** Adding one more bit of awesome? The bio-plague that gets cured during the course of the game also means humanity now has a lead on a way to halt the spread of the Kharaa bacterium-based aliens in ''VideoGame/NaturalSelection2'', which shares a universe with ''Subnautica''. That janitor managed to help stop an interstellar war, knowingly or not!

* Shutting off Alterra's Communications Tower. You've cut off the amoral mega-corp's [[BigBrotherIsWatching surveillance]] for this area of the planet. Both Margeurit and Al-An compliment you on it, and the former allows you full access to her base and greenhouse as thanks.

** Similarly, the entire fabrication scene. You put in batches of materials to make each component one at a time, as AL-AN finally explains his entire backstory and role in 4546B's history, all while the soundtrack grows more elaborate and optimistic with every completed component. And then you're rewarded for your efforts with the sight of an incredibly-advanced alien being reborn right before your eyes.

** Scratch the [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated "Dying"]] part, but the rest stands. As shown by the ''Below Zero'' expansion, she both survived and ''killed the Reaper with only four minutes of oxygen to spare''. She then rode the corpse after it floated to the surface as a raft, kept herself warm by burning its limited body fat, ate its tough muscle meat for food, and survived with three liters of fresh water to drink until it drifted up to the arctic pole where she could build a livable habitat. All of this while presumably being infected with the Kharaa that killed her fellow shipmates. To seal her complete victory over the beast, its bones now decorate the main room of her seabase.

*** It's stated early in ''Below Zero'' that, thanks to curing the bio-plague, life on 4546B is now flourishing again and the environment is now recovering rapidly. You've single-handedly saved the whole planet!
* In ''Below Zero'', bringing down the Communications Tower is this. You've now cut off Alterra's [[BigBrotherIsWatching surveillance]] for this area of the planet. Both Margeurit and Al An compliment you on it, and the former allows you full access to her base and greenhouse as thanks.

** Scratch that, it wasn't a DyingMomentOfAwesome. As shown by the ''Below Zero'' expansion, she both survived and ''killed the Reaper with only four minutes of oxygen to spare''. She then rode the corpse after it floated to the surface as a raft, kept herself warm by burning its limited body fat, ate its tough muscle meat for food, and survived with three liters of fresh water to drink until it drifted up to the arctic pole where she could build a livable habitat. All of this while presumably being infected with the Kharaa that killed her fellow shipmates. To seal her complete victory over the beast, its bones now decorate the main room of her seabase.

--> '''PDA:''' Motivational note: This lifeform has been categorized as a leviathan class predator. Congratulations on getting close enough to scan it and living to see the results!

* Your first face to face with The Emperor Leviathan goes from heart stopping to outright ''awe inspiring'' once you realize it isn't hostile and that she's the creature that's been talking to you for sometime.

* Marguerit Maida's DyingMomentOfAwesome, riding out with a seaglide and a piece of scrap to kill either a Reaper or a Sea Dragon. The last Paul saw her, she had the scrap lodged in its neck and wasn't letting go despite its best efforts.
** [[spoiler:Scratch that, it wasn't a DyingMomentOfAwesome]]. As shown by the ''Below Zero'' expansion, she [[spoiler:both survived and ''killed a Reaper with only four minutes of oxygen to spare''. She then rode the corpse after it floated to the surface as a raft, kept herself warm by burning its limited body fat, ate its tough muscle meat for food, and survived with three liters of fresh water to drink until it drifted up to the arctic pole where she could build a livable habitat. All of this while presumably being infected with the Kharaa that killed her fellow shipmates. To seal her complete victory over the beast, its bones now decorate the main room of her seabase.]]
* Getting aboard the Aurora and sealing the leaking drive module that is hemorrhaging radiation. This requires the player to have found the blueprints for and built a number of tools to remove obstacles aboard the damaged ship, braved radiation and edged perilously close to areas frequented by Reaper Leviathans, fought their way past Cave Crawlers, and finally braved the Bleeder-infested waters of the flooded drive core to repair the Aurora's damaged engines. It is a major early to mid-game accomplishment, frees up the player's exploration by no longer requiring the radiation suit, and [[GameplayAndStorySegregation lore-wise]] averts an ecological catastrophe.

** Adding one more bit of awesome? The bio-plague that gets cured during the course of the game also means humanity now has a lead on a way to halt the spread of the Kharaa bacterium-based aliens in VideoGame/NaturalSelection2, which shares a universe with Subnautica. That janitor managed to help stop an interstellar war, knowingly or not!
*** It's stated early in Below Zero that, thanks to curing the Bio-Plague, life on 4546b is now flourishing again and the environment is now recovering rapidly. You've single-handedly saved the whole planet!
* In Below Zero, bringing down the Communications Tower is this. You've now cut off Alterra's [[BigBrotherIsWatching surveillance]] for this area of the planet. Both Margeurit and Al An compliment you on it, and the former allows you full access to her base and greenhouse as thanks.

** [[spoiler:Scratch that, it wasn't a DyingMomentOfAwesome]]. As shown by the ''Below Zero'' expansion, she [[spoiler:both survived and ''killed a Reaper with only four minutes of oxygen to spare''. She then rode the corpse after it floated to the surface as a raft, kept herself warm by burning its limited body fat, ate its tough muscle meat for food, and survived with three liters of fresh water to drink until it drifted up to the arctic pole where she could build a livable habitat. All of this while presumably being infected with the Kharaa that killed her fellow shipmates. To seal her complete victory over the beast it's bones now decorate the main room of her seabase.]]

** [[spoiler:Scratch that, it wasn't a DyingMomentOfAwesome]]. As shown by the ''Below Zero'' expansion, she [[spoiler:both survived and ''killed a Reaper with only four minutes of oxygen to spare''. She then rode the corpse after it floated to the surface as a raft, kept herself warm by burning its limited body fat, ate its tough muscle meat for food, and survived with three liters of fresh water to drink until it drifted up to the arctic pole where she could build a livable habitat. All of this while presumably being infected with the Kharaa that killed her fellow shipmates.]]