Oh, the drama! 🎭 Apparently, after getting the boot 🥾 this month, the oh-so-important founders of Unknown Worlds are crying foul, claiming that Krafton, in its infinite wisdom (or lack thereof), is allegedly breaching contracts to line its greedy pockets and delay the much-anticipated *Subnautica 2*. 🙄 As if we didn’t have enough problems already.
For those living under a rock 🪨, on July 2nd, the “visionaries” behind *Subnautica* were given the pink slip 📜 by Krafton. Why, you ask? Well, Krafton claims these geniuses—Ted Gill, Charlie Cleveland, and Max McGuire—were too busy twiddling their thumbs 🧌 to actually work on *Subnautica 2*, leading to, and I quote, “repeated confusion in direction and significant delays.” Right, because that totally justifies firing them. Now, these disgruntled ex-founders have teamed up to slap Krafton with a lawsuit, claiming the publisher is breaking their initial agreement from way back in October 2021 when Krafton bought Unknown Worlds. Talk about a plot twist! 🤪
The lawsuit (which you can find buried somewhere on the internet 🌐) claims the founders signed a deal that “involved a $500 million up front payment, plus an earnout that could reach $250 million depending on Unknown Worlds’ performance through 2025.” Oh, the horror! 😱 It seems Krafton’s decision to fire the founders and push the game’s early access out of 2025 is all about greed. Because, you know, companies never make decisions based on money. 😇
This lawsuit directly contradicts Krafton’s own statements from July 2nd, when they claimed the founders were replaced by Steve Papoutsis (aka the CEO of Striking Distance Studios) because they “abandoned” the project. Sure, because that makes total sense. Then, on July 9th, Krafton announced that *Subnautica 2*’s early access is now slated for 2026. According to the delay announcement, the game was in tip-top shape 👍, but Krafton’s closed testing revealed “some areas where we needed to improve.” Translation: “We need more time to milk this franchise dry.” 🐄
The former studio executives now claim this was all about profit, specifically $250 million in profit. The lawsuit alleges that “Krafton’s actions have already severely damaged fan anticipation and undermined the potential release of *Subnautica 2*.” As if fans weren’t already disappointed enough. The decision to fire the founders was apparently a scheme to strip Unknown Worlds of their autonomy, allowing Krafton to delay the game, which, according to the original contract, was supposed to be Unknown Worlds’ decision. 🤨
The lawsuit goes on to say that “Krafton flagrantly breached both the letter and the spirit of the promises” made when they bought Unknown Worlds. Basically, Krafton allegedly broke every promise they made. 💔 The lawsuit concludes with a bombshell: “Krafton knew that allowing the Founders to launch *Subnautica 2* as planned would generate enormous commercial success and require Krafton to pay the $250 million earnout. By firing the Founders and delaying the launch, Krafton can capture (what’s left of) the game’s commercial success without paying the Unknown Worlds team a penny of the earnout.” Savage! 🔥
It’s worth mentioning that this whole legal mess contradicts everything Krafton said when they acquired *Hi-Fi Rush* in September 2024. Krafton’s CEO Changhan ‘CH’ Kim claimed, “Tango Gameworks are creative. They want to try something new, and we want to do more of that,” and that their decision to buy Tango Gameworks was based on “legacy, not profit.” Yeah, right. 🤥
So, while this legal drama unfolds, *Subnautica 2* is still (supposedly) scheduled for early access sometime in 2026. Don’t hold your breath. 🌬️
Pixel P. Snarkbyte, widely regarded as the “Shakespeare of Sh*tposts,” is a video game expert with a unique knack for turning pixels into punchlines.
Born in the small town of Respawn, Pennsylvania, Pixel grew up mashing buttons on an ancient NES controller, firmly believing that “blowing into the cartridge” was a sacred ritual passed down through generations.
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