More details about the clash between Subnautica developer Unknown Worlds and publisher Krafton. In a lengthy 58-page lawsuit against Krafton by Unknown Worlds’ co-founders Charles Cleveland, Adam McGuire and Edward Gill, the trio has claimed that the publisher has “flagrantly breached both the letter and the spirit of the promises at the very core of its agreement to purchase Unknown Worlds”.
According to Kotaku, the core of the lawsuit revolves around a $250 million payout that was part of Krafton acquiring Unknown Worlds for $500 million. The three co-founders have claimed that the publisher has been working towards delaying the release of Subnautica 2 for months at this point. As for what damages the three are looking to win through the lawsuit, it is slated to be “determined at trial”.
“Krafton engaged in a months-long campaign to delay Subnautica 2’s release,” reads the lawsuit. “It pulled key marketing materials, refused to follow through with crucial partnerships, and reneged on long-standing commitments to handle important pre-launch tasks.”
According to the co-founders, Krafton had “promised to leave creative and operational control in the hands of the Founders. Promise broken. It promised to consult with the Founders before taking any action that could harm the earnout. Promise broken. It promised not to take any action with the primary business purpose of frustrating the earnout. Promise broken. And it promised not to terminate the Founders without Cause. Promise broken.”
For its part, Krafton has provided its own statement on the matter. According to GamesRadar, the company said that it was “disappointed” about this happening, and that the publisher made its decisions to try and ensure that Subnautica 2 is the “best possible game” that “lives up to fan expectations”.
“Krafton’s decisions were made to ensure Subnautica 2 is the best possible game and lives up to fan expectations,” said Krafton in its statement. “Releasing the game prematurely with insufficient content would have both disappointed the players, who are at the heart of everything Krafton does, and hurt both the Subnautica and Unknown Worlds brands.”
“While we are disappointed that Charlie, Max, and Ted have filed a lawsuit seeking a huge payout, we look forward to defending ourselves in court. In the meantime, Krafton remains focused on what matters: delivering the best possible game as quickly as possible to Subnautica‘s fans.”
The lawsuit was originally announced by Cleveland just last week through a social media post, where he said that he, alongside the other co-founders, needed to sue Krafton because “this needs to be made right”. He also wrote about Subnautica having been his life’s work, and that the three co-founders wanting to keep the earnout for themselves was untrue.
“As for the earnout, the idea that Max, Ted and I wanted to keep it all for ourselves is totally untrue,” he wrote. “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.”
For more details about the clash between Krafton and Unknown Worlds, check out our thoughts on the matter.
