One person is steering. Another is watching the sonar. Someone else is trying to keep the engines alive. Then an alarm starts screaming, water is coming in, and you suddenly realize the fourth person has been standing at the wrong station for the last two minutes.
That is S.O.N.A.R. — Submarine Operators Not Actually Ready.
Developed by Abylight Barcelona, S.O.N.A.R. is a first-person, 1–4 player online co-op submarine simulator where the submarine is operated by the entire crew rather than a single player. Nine critical stations cover jobs such as navigation, diving, sonar, periscope operations, engineering and damage control, so communication is not just helpful — the crew genuinely has to work together.
The missions give that teamwork an actual purpose. Crews can hunt enemy vessels, protect cargo ships, sneak past destroyers, recover treasure and deal with emergencies inside the submarine. There is also a survival element: food, rest and the condition of the crew matter, meaning the people inside the submarine can become another problem to manage when a mission starts going wrong.
And S.O.N.A.R. clearly wants those situations to be memorable rather than perfectly serious. Proximity voice chat lets crew members shout warnings and coordinate while everything is happening around them. The developers have even described the game as something that can be played seriously by a well-organized crew or descend into complete chaos when somebody decides to ignore orders.
The official S.O.N.A.R. Discord server is closely connected to the development of the game. Abylight repeatedly directs players there to find crewmates, discuss the game, report bugs, suggest improvements and share feedback with the development team. The developers have also used Discord for playtest competitions and community events, making it much more than a place to chat while waiting for the next mission.
That is particularly important for S.O.N.A.R. because the game is being shaped with player feedback. Earlier playtests produced direct discussion about things such as oxygen and COâ‚‚ systems, mission variety, equipment handling and crew interactions, while later tests introduced new features including a treasure recovery station, a tutorial and additional multiplayer modes.
So the Discord has a very practical role: find your crew before diving in. You can meet other players, organize sessions, discuss how to handle the submarine’s stations, follow playtests and updates, and send feedback directly to the people making S.O.N.A.R.
Because sooner or later, every crew reaches the same moment.
The submarine is flooding.
The sonar has detected something.
Someone is yelling for repairs.
And four people are desperately trying to remember who was supposed to be in charge.
