Krafton has been accused of bad faith termination after laying off the entire Subnautica 2 leadership team, allegedly to avoid paying a $250 million earnout. On July 2, news broke that Krafton had parted ways with Unknown Worlds’ founders Charlie Cleveland and Max McGuire, as well as the studio’s CEO, Ted Gill. The South Korean company also announced that the long-awaited early-access release of Subnautica 2 has been delayed to 2026, reportedly to ensure the game meets the developer’s expectations. However, there may be a far more sinister motive behind these radical decisions.
Two days after being laid off, on July 4, Charlie Cleveland released a statement. The co-founder of Unknown Worlds and one of the key figures behind the Subnautica franchise claimed that, contrary to Krafton’s assertions, Subnautica 2 is indeed ready for its promised early access launch. He also expressed shock at the company’s recent decisions. While the statement didn’t address Krafton’s true intentions, newly surfaced reports may shed light on why the company chose to delay a game that appears to have met all its deadlines.
Subnautica developer Unknown Worlds releases a letter to its community after fans express concern and upset over recent management changes.
According to a Bloomberg report, Krafton’s purchase agreement with Unknown Worlds included a $250 million earnout tied to the developer’s 2025 revenue. In other words, if Subnautica 2 launched in 2025 and hit a specific sales target outlined in the contract, Krafton would be required to pay a $250 million bonus to the Unknown Worlds team. However, by forcibly delaying Subnautica 2 to 2026, the company would effectively avoid paying the earnout. This, allegedly, is the real reason behind Krafton’s decision to fire the leadership at Unknown Worlds and postpone the game’s release.
Subnautica 2 Controversy Has Led to Boycott Calls
Hours after Bloomberg’s report accusing Krafton of bad faith termination, thousands of Subnautica 2 fans on Reddit began calling for a global boycott. One post, which has nearly 20,000 upvotes at the time of writing, urges fans not to purchase the game upon release. Enraged players are accusing Krafton of greed and manipulation, citing the company’s recent controversies. Similar posts are encouraging users to remove the game from their Steam wishlist as a form of protest. For context, Subnautica 2 is currently Steam’s second most-wishlisted title, just behind the long-awaited Hollow Knight: Silksong.
In light of recent allegations, a Krafton spokesperson provided a statement to PC Gamer, claiming that Subnautica 2‘s delay was not prompted by any “contractual obligations” to Unknown Worlds. In what appears to be an effort to divert attention from Bloomberg’s report, the current development team also released the first gameplay footage of Subnautica 2, assuring fans that production is ongoing and that more surprises are on the way.
In the days ahead, it will be worth watching how Subnautica 2, one of the most anticipated games of recent years, will be impacted by Krafton’s controversial decisions and whether more evidence surrounding the alleged bad-faith termination will emerge.
