Unknown Worlds creative director Anthony Gallegos said early access developers should add new features "as soon as possible" rather than waiting until they are polished. Gallegos spoke about lessons learned during Subnautica's long development in Steam early access, which began in 2014. He encouraged devs to experiment with incomplete or prototype features directly with players instead of holding back unfinished work. The original Subnautica refined major design elements, including its shift toward horror, by watching how players and streamers responded to early builds.