More Subnautica 2 legal trouble brewing amid claims Kraft...

What’s Happening

Real talk: Lawyers for Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds’ newly reinstated CEO Ted Gill are reportedly pushing for Krafton to be found in contempt of a recent court ruling after the publisher locked in a May early access release for the highly anticipated underwater survival sequel without consulting Gill.

Read more Home News Subnautica 2 More Subnautica 2 legal trouble brewing amid claims Krafton intentionally leaked May release without consulting reinstated CEO Krafton self-servingly just dropped the launch without any regard to its impact on the game, the team, or the community. Image credit: Unknown Worlds/Krafton News by Matt Wales News Reporter Follow Subnautica 2 Lawyers for Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds’ newly reinstated CEO Ted Gill are reportedly pushing for Krafton to be found in contempt of a recent court ruling after the publisher locked in a May early access release for the highly anticipated underwater survival sequel without consulting Gill. (it feels like chaos)

Krafton - which acquired Unknown Worlds in 2001 - removed Gill from his position at Unknown Worlds last summer , in a move that also saw the departure of studio founder and Subnautica game director Charlie Cleveland, and special projects director Max McGuire.

The Details

Steve Papoutsis, CEO at Krafton’s The Callisto Protocol studio Striking Distance, replaced the outgoing leadership team. Shortly after, Gill, Cleveland, and McGuire entered into an acrimonious legal battle with the publisher, claiming they were deliberately pushed out, and that the game was intentionally delayed so Krafton could avoid paying the team a hefty $250m bonus package .

As the case continued, it was alleged Krafton’s CEO had asked ChatGPT to “brainstorm ways to avoid paying” the bonus , and earlier this week a Delaware judge delivered the bombshell verdict Krafton had breached its Equity Purchase Agreement with Unknown Worlds by “terminating the Key Employees without valid Cause and operational control of [the studio]. ” so, the board resolution that saw Gill and his co-developers fired was declared “ineffective”, and Krafton was ordered to reinstate Gill, giving him “full operating authority” of Unknown Worlds and of Subnautica 2’s Early Access release.

Why This Matters

It’s that latter part that’s key to the latest twist in the saga.

Gaming fans have strong opinions about moves like this, and for good reason.

The Bottom Line

This story is still developing, and we’ll keep you updated as more info drops.

How do you feel about this development?