Stranded Deep

Stranded Deep is a first-person survival game. After a plane crash, the character is stranded on a small island in the Pacific. From there, they explore more islands, dive to wrecks and try to build a safe existence from limited resources. It is less about set quest lines and more about choices between exploration, supplies and risk.

The world is assembled procedurally for new save games. As a result, resources, dangers and discoveries are not the same in every run. Alongside the long survival routine, there is also a way to escape as a concrete game goal. The game was developed by the Australian studio Beam Team Games.

The PC early access of Stranded Deep began on Jan 23, 2015, according to Steam. The console versions for PS4 and Xbox One came out in April 2020, and the native Nintendo Switch version on Aug 31, 2021. Only on Aug 10, 2022 did Steam list the PC version as a full release. Different PC and console dates are therefore not a contradiction: the PC was playable long before, but reached its full-version milestone later.

The German PlayStation Store metadata lists Apr 20, 2020, while Beam Team's PlayStation Blog post from Apr 20 explicitly named the following day as the start. Xbox Wire confirms Apr 21. For the cross-platform timeline, the announced console launch on Apr 21 is therefore used, with the documented regional store difference. A later physical Switch cartridge from Mar 25, 2022 is not a second native platform.

Standalone versions exist for PC (Windows, macOS and Linux via Steam), PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. The PC product combines several operating systems, while PS4 and Xbox One are separate console products. The German PlayStation Store explicitly lists the PS4 edition, which can also run on PS5 through backward compatibility. This playability is not proof of a native PS5 version.

The Xbox One version can be played through the compatibility features of newer Xbox consoles, but it does not constitute a separate Xbox Series release. Nintendo lists a download for the original Switch for the Switch version; notes on file size for Switch 2 or its compatibility display likewise do not prove a new native Switch 2 version. PC and console versions partly have different co-op and editor features.

From initially simple natural materials, you craft tools, weapons and shelters. Spears, axes, bows and harpoons help with hunting and defence; items found in wrecks provide valuable extra equipment. As experience grows, crafting, hunting, cooking and physical abilities improve, among other things. Several building stages allow you to expand from a makeshift shelter to solid buildings.

The open structure creates a recurring trade-off: if you stay only on the first island, you eventually run short of supplies; if you sail too far out early, you risk storms, injuries and scarce provisions. A building project or expedition is only worthwhile when water and food are secured.

For Windows, Steam lists as minimum a 64-bit quad-core with 2.0 GHz, 8 GB RAM, 2 GB graphics memory, DirectX 11 and 4 GB free storage space. The recommendation raises the CPU clock to 3.0 GHz and graphics memory to 4 GB. The originally listed minimum version, Windows 7, should no longer be understood as a current Steam installation requirement, because the separate Steam client requires Windows 10 or newer.

Separate requirement blocks for macOS and Linux are listed on Steam. The PC version offers a German user interface. Nintendo lists German, English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese, among others. The availability of spoken language and individual features varies by store and system.

You monitor vital values through a survival watch. Missing food or water is not the only danger: intense sunlight, poisoning, broken bones and bleeding can end expeditions just as easily. Treatment and shelter must be planned with your limited supplies.

Fish, land animals and other resources secure your food supply, but many encounters carry risks. Growing plants also requires care and water. These systems make maintaining a working supply the lasting core of the game, not just an entry hurdle.

The island world is generated procedurally. Beach sections, underwater areas and sunken ships provide materials, while sharks, snakes and other animals make exploration dangerous. Rarer equipment can be found in wrecks. The developers also name three special boss encounters with rewards that play a role in escaping.

If you explore the game world over a long time, you develop your own route between supply points, building sites and wrecks. Escape is possible, but it is not a linear mission path. A self-built infrastructure is often more important than a quick series of fights.

Shelters can be made from simple palm leaves or, later, from sturdier materials. Raft building goes further: platforms can be combined with sails, storage, anchors, sunshades or an engine. The vehicle thus becomes a means of transport for longer expeditions between islands. On PC, you can also build a gyrocopter.

Plots and water management allow for more predictable supplies. A well-built base makes supplying yourself easier, but it does not make exploration trips unnecessary, because certain resources and finds are located outside your base.

The Steam version offers single player, online co-op and local or split-screen co-op play. PlayStation 4 also supports online play with up to two people according to current store details, which usually requires PlayStation Plus on the console. For Xbox One, Microsoft lists local two-player co-op and online play for two.

The Nintendo Switch version, by contrast, officially lists only one person on a single system. The co-op scope of the PC, PlayStation or Xbox version should not be assumed from this. A general cross-platform co-op feature is not confirmed by these product details.

On PC, Stranded Deep offers an island or map editor. The terrain of your own islands can be shaped and stocked with rocks, trees and wildlife. The created locations can be integrated into your own survival world and shared with others.

Steam also lists Workshop support for the game. This extends replay value beyond randomly generated default worlds. However, the Steam features are no proof that all tools or Workshop content are also available on consoles.

The Original Soundtrack of Stranded Deep is sold as a standalone add-on. The album, released in 2021, contains 17 tracks by the composer duo Paul Stähr and Felix Bachlinger (Only Sound). The music download is a separate product, but it does not include the base game and adds no islands, quests or new gameplay mechanics.

A bundle with the base game and soundtrack should therefore be distinguished from a gameplay expansion. On a permanent game overview, the soundtrack should not be mistaken for a major story DLC.

Beam Team Games from Australia developed the original survival game. The 2020 console releases followed a longer phase of changing publishing plans: after the original publisher Telltale Games shut down, Beam Team regained the console rights and eventually brought the project to those systems itself. Xbox Wire lists Fun Labs as the developer responsible for the Xbox One port, while Beam Team Publishing is listed as the publisher.

In August 2024, North Beach Games announced the sequel Stranded Deep 2 with a new studio in Prague. Sam Edwards, co-founder of the original game, was set to work there as Creative Director. The sequel is a separate development project and not an ongoing update or DLC for Stranded Deep.