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Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag Try a single issue or save on a subscription Issues delivered straight to your door or device From£35.99View Amazon Prime Day Deals Essential Hardware PC Gaming Show Recommended reading Survival & Crafting Krafton accuses former Subnautica 2 bosses of abandoning the game in surprising new statement: 'We feel a profound sense of betrayal by their failure to honor the trust placed in them' Ousted Subnautica studio co-founder says it was a 'shock' to get fired, Subnautica 2 is 'ready' for early access release, and no longer working 'at the company I started stings' Survival & Crafting Subnautica 2 studio begs rioting fans for benefit of the doubt after leadership axed by owner Krafton: 'The team that has been working on the game day-to-day over the last few years remains completely unchanged' Subnautica studio leadership gutted by Krafton, which outright says that Subnautica 2 needs 'renewed energy and momentum' Survival & Crafting Subnautica 2 publisher Krafton confirms 2026 delay, says the change 'was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations' Gaming Industry MindsEye is set to launch next week, so it's probably not great that the studio's chief financial officer and chief legal officer have both resigned Third Person Shooter MindsEye boss reportedly blames its failure on 'saboteurs' and says a re-launch is in the works, even as the entire development studio is at risk of layoff Subnautica 2 The Subnautica 2 saga gets nastier, with ousted leaders confirming they'll sue Krafton: 'It continues to be an explosive and surreal time' Shaun Prescott 11 July 2025 "Suing a multi-billion dollar company in a painful, public and possibly protracted way was certainly not on my bucket list." When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Unknown Worlds Entertainment) The spat between recently fired Unknown Worlds founders and publisher Krafton has gotten messier, with a co-founder of the former, Charlie Cleveland, confirming on Reddit that a lawsuit has been filed against Krafton. Cleveland's update follows a statement issued by Krafton earlier today. The publisher claimed that the former Subnautica 2 bosses—specifically Cleveland and fellow co-founder Max McGuire—had "abandoned the responsibilities entrusted to them", namely, the development of Subnautica 2. It also claimed that the game's Early Access build, which was scheduled to release imminently, "falls short in terms of content volume". "We are deeply disappointed by the former leadership's conduct," the statement read, "and above all, we feel a profound sense of betrayal by their failure to honor the trust placed in them by our fans". The tone of this statement is ruthless, to say the least, and quite different to Krafton's initial missive, which maintained a vague corporate impassivity, while extending gratitude to the sacked leaders. Related Articles Krafton accuses former Subnautica 2 bosses of abandoning the game in surprising new statement: 'We feel a profound sense of betrayal by their failure to honor the trust placed in them' Ousted Subnautica studio co-founder says it was a 'shock' to get fired, Subnautica 2 is 'ready' for early access release, and no longer working 'at the company I started stings' Subnautica 2 studio begs rioting fans for benefit of the doubt after leadership axed by owner Krafton: 'The team that has been working on the game day-to-day over the last few years remains completely unchanged' In his own statement, Cleveland repeats his claim that Subnautica 2 is ready for Early Access—which Krafton has denied—before confirming the lawsuit. "We’ve now filed a lawsuit against Krafton: the details should eventually become (at least mostly) public—you all deserve the full story. Suing a multi-billion dollar company in a painful, public and possibly protracted way was certainly not on my bucket list. But this needs to be made right. Subnautica has been my life’s work and I would never willingly abandon it or the amazing team that has poured their hearts into it." Cleveland also addresses the elephant in the room: the $250 million bonus which was to be rewarded to Unknown Worlds upon reaching certain revenue milestones by the end of 2025, with 90 percent of that figure going to "the three former executives", according to Krafton. Previous rumors had suggested that the sackings and Subnautica 2's delay was a tactic on Krafton's part to avoid paying out this amount, but the publisher suggested in today's statement that "fair and equitable compensation" would be granted to remaining Unknown Worlds employees. Cleveland writes that it was never the leadership's intention to keep the 90 percent. "As for the earnout," he writes, "the idea that Max, Ted and I wanted to keep it all for ourselves is totally untrue. I’m in this industry because I love it, not for riches. Historically we’ve always shared our profits with the team and did the same when we sold the studio. You can be damned sure we’ll continue with the earnout/bonus as well. They deserve it for all their incredible work trying to get this great game into your hands." The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. The saga continues then, and it appears to be turning into a protracted one. Specific details of the lawsuit have yet to emerge, but Cleveland implies we'll be hearing more about that soon. Here's his full statement: Hello everyone, It continues to be an explosive and surreal time for the Subnautica team and community. None of this is what we wanted. But we truly appreciate the amazing support we’ve gotten from everyone. It means a lot to us, especially now. As I wrote last week, we know in our souls that the game is ready for Early Access - that’s just how we roll. And we’d like nothing more than for you to play it (game devs live for this). But it’s not currently under our control. We’ve now filed a lawsuit against Krafton: the details should eventually become (at least mostly) public - you all deserve the full story. Suing a multi-billion dollar company in a painful, public and possibly protracted way was certainly not on my bucket list. But this needs to be made right. Subnautica has been my life’s work and I would never willingly abandon it or the amazing team that has poured their hearts into it. As for the earnout, the idea that Max, Ted and I wanted to keep it all for ourselves is totally untrue. I’m in this industry because I love it, not for riches. Historically we’ve always shared our profits with the team and did the same when we sold the studio. You can be damned sure we’ll continue with the earnout/bonus as well. They deserve it for all their incredible work trying to get this great game into your hands. Stay tuned. Shaun Prescott Social Links Navigation Australian Editor Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. Krafton accuses former Subnautica 2 bosses of abandoning the game in surprising new statement: 'We feel a profound sense of betrayal by their failure to honor the trust placed in them' Ousted Subnautica studio co-founder says it was a 'shock' to get fired, Subnautica 2 is 'ready' for early access release, and no longer working 'at the company I started stings' Subnautica 2 studio begs rioting fans for benefit of the doubt after leadership axed by owner Krafton: 'The team that has been working on the game day-to-day over the last few years remains completely unchanged' Subnautica studio leadership gutted by Krafton, which outright says that Subnautica 2 needs 'renewed energy and momentum' Subnautica 2 publisher Krafton confirms 2026 delay, says the change 'was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations' MindsEye is set to launch next week, so it's probably not great that the studio's chief financial officer and chief legal officer have both resigned Latest in Games Ghost of Yōtei's big gameplay showcase had new weapons, smoother exploration, and a 'lo-fi beats' mode from Samurai Champloo director Shinichirō Watanabe Yep, Steam is down (update: we're so back) Shark Dentist is a 'horror roguelike' that's basically The Meg mashed up with an early '90s Milton Bradley toy The next Helldivers 2 warbond is going superscience sicko mode with a seven-barreled assault rifle, a plasma cannon, and a wormhole-generating backpack that lets you warp around the battlefield Krafton accuses former Subnautica 2 bosses of abandoning the game in surprising new statement: 'We feel a profound sense of betrayal by their failure to honor the trust placed in them' The GameStop stapler that smashed a Switch 2 screen on launch day is being auctioned off for charity, and bidding has already broken $100,000 Latest in News Ghost of Yōtei's big gameplay showcase had new weapons, smoother exploration, and a 'lo-fi beats' mode from Samurai Champloo director Shinichirō Watanabe Yep, Steam is down (update: we're so back) Shark Dentist is a 'horror roguelike' that's basically The Meg mashed up with an early '90s Milton Bradley toy Enough messing around: The objectively best PC gaming Prime Day deal is this boxed set of all three seasons of Twin Peaks and Fire Walk With Me for $45 The next Helldivers 2 warbond is going superscience sicko mode with a seven-barreled assault rifle, a plasma cannon, and a wormhole-generating backpack that lets you warp around the battlefield Controller prices are highway robbery these days, but even I can't deny this exceptional deal on Xbox pads for Amazon Prime Day HARDWARE BUYING GUIDES LATEST GAME REVIEWS Best graphics cards in 2025: I've tested pretty much every AMD and Nvidia GPU of the past 20 years and these are today's top cards Best gaming laptop in 2025: I've put the best of this new generation head-to-head and we have a winner Best gaming chair in 2025: I've tested a ton of gaming chairs and these are the seats I'd suggest for any PC gamer Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads Best graphics card for laptops in 2025: the mobile GPUs I'd want in my next gaming laptop Mycopunk review Persona 5: The Phantom X review NZXT N7 Z890 review NZXT N9 X870E review NZXT N9 Z890 review PC Gamer is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. 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