Subnautica 2 delayed to 2026, just a week after Krafton fired studio co-founders
Just a week after Krafton replaced the co-founders and leaders of Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds, the company has now confirmed that the game’s early access release will be delayed to 2026.
There’s been plenty speculation over the reason why Krafton removed the studio leaders last week, with a $250 million bonus on the line and the possibility that Subnautica 2’s release could be delayed. Having reviewed the purchase agreement for the studio in 2021, Bloomberg is able to report that the $250 million bonus was due to kick in if Unknown Worlds was able to hit a revenue target by the end of 2025. With no Subnautica 2 launch this year, the studio is unlikely to hit that target, and so employees could miss out, per Bloomberg’s anonymous sources.
So it’s no surprise now that Krafton is adamant that the firings and delay have absolutely nothing to do with any kind of bonus agreement, while founder Charlie Cleveland claims that the game was ready for an early access release.
In a blog post on the series subreddit, Cleveland said, “We know that the game is ready for early access release and we know you’re ready to play it.”
In a contrary statement, Krafton said that the delay stemmed from feedback from early tests and “It was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations.”
Meanwhile, in a town hall meeting with new CEO Steve Papoutsis, he said, “The desire of Krafton is to have the very best version of Subnautica 2 available for its early access. While yes, the software that everybody worked on is in a great spot and it felt like, ‘Hey we should launch this,’ that wasn’t where both parties aligned around.”
That does seem to suggest that an Early Access was plausible with the game as it is now. However, he added “it’s never been told to me that we’re making this change specifically to impact any earnout or anything like that.”
It’s an ugly mess for a game that was one of the most highly-anticipated titles on Steam for this year (or any year, to be honest).
But at least the co-founders are now free to go and make more games. Signing off on his blog, Cleveland says, “I also want you to know that this is not where the story ends.”
