Subnautica 2 is officially heading to early access in May.
As reported by IGN, Unknown Worlds studio head Steve Papoutsis sent out a message to his employees that Krafton approved Subnautica 2 for early access last week, and that it will be arriving with “more story chapters, built new creatures, and created new biomes along with many other features.”
This news arrived after the ongoing legal battle between Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds’ ousted leaders and publisher Krafton took a major turn when a judge ruled in favor of the former and ordered former CEO Ted Gill to be reinstated to his role.
“We look forward to working with Ted Gill to support a smooth transition and work toward a successful launch,” Papoutsis wrote in his message to Unknown Worlds’ staff. “Our priority is getting this game into the hands of the community that has been eagerly waiting for it–and that means honoring the work you have already done to make that possible.”
Krafton shared a statement with IGN confirming Papoutsis’ message, while also decrying the recent verdict against the company.
“We can confirm that the internal message shared with the Unknown Worlds team is accurate,” reads the statement. “The team has made meaningful progress following the milestone review approved earlier this month, and has been working toward an early-access release in May. While we respectfully disagree with this week’s court ruling and intend to explore all legal avenues, our goal is to minimize disruption to the team and to the release plan. We remain committed to an open development approach, working closely with the community as development continues, and are focused on delivering the best possible experience to players.”
Shortly after Gill and Unknown Worlds co-founders Charlie Cleveland and Max McGuire were forced out of the studio, reports emerged that the trio were fired as part of Krafton’s attempt to get out of paying a $250 million incentive bonus that was agreed upon when Krafton originally purchased Unknown Worlds.
Subsequent reports indicated that Krafton CEO Changhan Kim turned to ChatGPT in order to formulate a legal strategy to get out of paying the bonus and to remove the founders. That account appears to have been backed up by the judge’s ruling, which noted that Kim was warned against relying on AI for legal advice.
The ruling also extended the period for the performance bonus to September 2026, which will allow Gill, Cleveland, McGuire, and the rest of the Unknown Worlds team a chance to meet the benchmarks that will trigger a payment.
Subnautica 2 will be available on Xbox Series X|S and PC.