By now, most people are aware that Subnautica 2 has had a very long and sordid legal drama surrounding its development. Here’s a summary: it all started in July 2025 when publisher Krafton decided to suddenly fire the three co-founders of developer Unkown Worlds Entertainment, consisting of CEO Ted Gill, Charlie Cleveland, and Max McGuire, and replace them with Steve Papoutsis, who had previously been the CEO of Striking Distance Studios (The Callisto Protocol).
This immediately triggered a lawsuit by the Unknown Worlds co-founders, which resulted in a March 2026 ruling by a judge that declared Krafton had illegally fired said co-founders, as well as stolen development of Subnautica 2 from those co-founders, and that both should be returned to said co-founders. Oh, and that said illegal firing resulted in the game being illegally delayed by Krafton in order to prevent a $250 million USD payout to Unknown Worlds. Well, about that payout…
Bloomberg and other news outlets has just reported that Krafton is finally paying out that promised $250 million USD to Unknown Worlds Entertainment. Apparently, this payout is a direct result of the legal settlement back in March 2026. The payout will occur over the course of three annual installments, and will be paid to all current employees of Unknown Worlds. Previously, the payout only applied to employees who were employed at the time of Krafton’s acquisition of Unknown Worlds, but part of the legal settlement is that the payout now goes out to all Unknown Worlds employees period, regardless of when they joined the company.
Ted Gill Stepping Down…This Time Voluntarily(?)
Alas, this payout apparently came with a price of its own. As part of the settlement for this payout, newly reinstated Unknown Worlds CEO Ted Gill has just announced that he will be stepping down from his job. According to him, he “mutually agreed to part ways” with Krafton and Unknown Worlds, and that “[n]ew leadership is the best way for the studio to move forward.” As for the ongoing development of Subnautica 2, Gill mentions that “[w]e’re all super excited about Subnautica 2 and its tremendous success”, with “we” being Unknown Worlds presumably.
The new CEO who will replace Gill is currently unknown. Apparently, both Krafton and Unknown Worlds will look for someone outside of both companies to serve as Unknown Worlds’ new CEO. Everything else is currently TBA.
Subnautica 2 Development Running into Rough Waters?
I’m of two minds on this settlement. On one hand, it’s amazingly great that Unknown Worlds is finally getting their payout. They’ve more than deserved it after the wild success of Subnautica 2, and all the illegal nonsense that Krafton has been inflicting on them. The fact that everyone in Unknown Worlds is now getting it is the cherry on top here. You know, since everyone is getting their share of the $250 million instead of just the veterans.
On the other hand, Ted Gill stepping down from his position as Unknown Worlds CEO is a bit…iffy. A lot of news outlets say that it’s voluntary, but if his stepping down is part of the conditions for getting that $250 million USD for Unknown Worlds, it’s not exactly voluntary, is it? It’s more Gill sacrificing himself so that his employees can get their money. Even if not that, it’s possible that Gill is just tired of Krafton doing everything it can, legal and illegal alike, to screw him and his company over, and just wants to leave it to someone else. Someone who will apparently not have any stake in the fight between Krafton and Unknown Worlds. Whether this will succeed is anyone’s guess.
Regardless, it makes me wonder now about the state of Subnautica 2‘s development. With the CEO stepping down like this, it might very well result in a halt or adjustment in development when the new CEO gets there. We can only hope that said development doesn’t see any delays because of this shakeup.
What do you all think? Are you too happy that Unknown Worlds is finally getting their long-deserved money? Are you too worried about the future of Subnautica 2 with this shakeup in Unknown Worlds’ leadership? Tell us your aquatic thoughts in the comments section below.
Source: Bloomberg
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