Report: Krafton delays Subnautica 2 to avoid $250 million bonus payout to developers

Billion-dollar video game maven Krafton has delayed Subnautica 2's release right before a $250 million payout bonus was to be issued, leading to controversy and industry-wide rifts.

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Krafton recently made a radical decision that made headlines. The publisher ousted Subnautica 2's executive leadership team, pushing three key people out of the Unknown Worlds team, including studio co-founder Max McGuire. Krafton appointed a new CEO of Unknown Worlds to ensure the studio delivered timely build updates for an eventual release.

Now it's been revealed that Subnautica 2's early access period has been delayed to 2026. The timing is suspect, with new reports from Bloomberg indicating that Krafton delayed the game just months before the company would have paid a $250 million bonus to developers. When Krafton bought Unknown Worlds in 2021, a clause in the acquisition contract outlined a bonus payout structure if certain milestones were hit throughout 2025--e.g. if the team could make X amount of revenue by the end of 2025, they'd get a substantial $250 million payout.

With Subnautica 2 delayed outside of 2025, which is beyond the timeframe outlined in the contract, Unknown Worlds likely will not achieve its revenue target. In this event, Krafton wouldn't have to pay out a substantial $250 million bonus.

Krafton says that this decision was solely made to improve the quality of Subnautica 2--"It was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations," a spokesperson told Bloomberg.

Interestingly enough, Subnautica recently launched onto mobile just days ago for $8.99 on Google Play and the App Store.