Subnautica 2 Legal Battle Continues as Unknown Worlds Sues Its Co-Founders
The ongoing legal dispute surrounding Subnautica 2 has taken another turn. The studio’s original co-founders Charlie Cleveland, Max McGuire, and Ted Gill are now facing a lawsuit filed by Unknown Worlds Entertainment, the company they helped establish and which is now fully owned by KRAFTON.
This filing comes just over a week after KRAFTON submitted its own lawsuit against the three co-founders. Given that Unknown Worlds is wholly owned by KRAFTON, this second lawsuit appears to increase the pressure on the former executives.
The new suit includes alleged Slack messages intended to reinforce KRAFTON’s claims that Cleveland and McGuire had stepped back from their responsibilities on Subnautica 2. The lawsuit argues they shifted their focus to personal projects while the rest of the development team was left to continue the game’s production.
According to the filing, Cleveland and McGuire allegedly “abandoned” their roles, which had a negative impact on Subnautica 2’s progress. The suit also claims the co-founders were willing to push out a “sub-standard” version of the game in order to secure a $250 million bonus tied to development milestones.
The complaint reads:
“Acting out of pure self-interest, the Key Employees pushed to release any game, even one that was underdeveloped and had received a litany of disappointing reviews, into circulation on a timeline that maximized their earnout, even if it meant disappointing Subnautica’s devoted fans and damaging the franchise.”
Since filing their own lawsuit against KRAFTON earlier this month, Cleveland, McGuire, and Gill have not commented on this new development. The circumstances raise questions: is this lawsuit a genuine move by Unknown Worlds’ current staff, or simply another legal tactic by KRAFTON using its subsidiary’s name?
Requests for clarification from KRAFTON about whether the lawsuit reflects the views of Unknown Worlds employees went unanswered prior to publication.
What is clear is that this conflict will not be resolved quickly. With multiple lawsuits now in play and both sides deeply entrenched, the Subnautica 2 legal battle is shaping up to be a long-running dispute. There are likely to be aspects of this case that the public will never fully know, leaving both fans and the industry to watch closely as events unfold.
Do you think this lawsuit is being driven by KRAFTON as a pressure tactic, or do you believe current Unknown Worlds staff genuinely support legal action against the studio’s founders?
