Subnautica 2 reportedly delayed to 2026, allegedly to avoid a $250 million bill

Despite seeming ready for an early access launch before the end of this year, Steam's second-most wishlisted game Subnautica 2 is allegedly being delayed into 2026. That's according to a new Bloomberg report that also claims that an enormous bonus payment of $250 million was on the cards for developer Unknown Worlds if it reached certain revenue targets - targets that would likely be achievable with the release of the game.

Something didn't add up with the sudden departure of Unknown Worlds' two co-founders and president last week. Unexpectedly ousted from the Subnautica 2 studio by parent company Krafton, there appeared to be no clear reason why. One of the removed trio, co-founder Charlie Cleveland, claimed a few days back that the game was well on track and "ready" for the Subnautica 2 release date to land this year. He also described the leadership change as a "shock."

However, this new report from Jason Schreier may have found the answer to why the studio's leaders were forced out and why Subnautica 2 - on course to join our list of the best survival games - has seemingly been pushed to next year.

He claims that a $250 million bonus was going to be paid out to Unknown Worlds by Krafton if it hit certain revenue targets by the end of 2025. His sources tell him that "by delaying Subnautica 2 into next year, the company is unlikely to hit those targets and therefore the employees may not be eligible for the payout." With the old leadership team prepared to share this cash among the entire development team, it would've resulted in devs earning six or seven-figure bonuses.

Schreier has also reviewed an audio recording of a townhall at Unknown Worlds, featuring the company's new CEO, Steve Papoutsis. In this meeting, he allegedly says that he's unaware of the specifics of the bonus scheme and that any contractual terms established when Krafton bought Unknown Worlds are "beyond my current understanding at the moment."

On why the game is getting delayed, Paputsis reportedly says that "it's never been told to me that we're making this change specifically to impact any earnout or anything like that." He adds that Krafton's reasoning appears to be driven by wanting the highest quality product possible when it launches.

PCGamesN has reached out to Krafton for comment on the claims in Schreier's report.

Until we get more official information on this delay, or Krafton confirms it to us, head to our list of the best single-player games or see what else is on the horizon with our upcoming PC games guide.