Subnautica 2 Delayed To Dodge A $250M Bonus For Devs? Publisher Issues Statement

The vibe in the video game industry is terrible right now. Big brands like Microsoft's Xbox is seemingly on the ropes and gamers are fighting for their consumer rights. On top of that, a new report by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier will raise some eyebrows, as it appears that Korean publisher Krafton is engaging in some sneaky maneuvers to avoid paying its developers bonuses at one of its studios.

Unknown Worlds Entertainment was preparing to release the highly anticipated Subnautica 2 into early access later this year. However, that’s no longer going to be the case after Krafton made the decision to push its release out to sometime in 2026 instead.

Delays aren’t unusual in the gaming industry, with the incredible complexity of modern AAA titles. In this case, though, the delay might be motivated by something other than quality. The development studio was due a hefty $250 million bonus, which would have been distributed throughout the team, if it met revenue goals this year. The delay basically ensures that it won’t happen.


Moreover, several of the studio’s leadership have been pushed out, including CEO Ted Gill and founders Max McGuire and Charlie Cleveland. Krafton has not commented about the reasoning behind these removals. Although, the “sequel’s delay was against the wishes of the studio’s former leadership.”

Krafton is claiming that the bonuses had nothing to do with the decision to delay the release of the game, telling IGN that “it was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations.” However, a leaked audio from a town hall featuring newly installed CEO Steve Papoutsis paints a different picture. During the town hall he said, “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.”

It's unfortunate that the situation is unfolding in this manner. Hopefully it doesn’t to devolve into something worse.