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If there is one survival crafting series that deserves all the praise in the world, it is Subnautica. Back when the genre included only high fantasy realms or zombie-infested places, Unknown Worlds created a franchise with the most unique setting, an atmosphere beyond anything we had seen, and some of the most engaging building and crafting mechanics, accompanied by terrifying underwater exploration. It was hell for claustrophobic people, but heaven for survival fans. When Subnautica 2 got announced, everyone was excited, up until a few hours ago. Krafton‘s questionable delay of Subnautica 2 has led to most of the fans organizing a boycott of this upcoming sequel.
Subnautica 2 Players Want to Boycott the Game After Its Delay
If you’re out of the loop, allow me to tell you what’s been going on with Subnautica 2, its delay, and the upcoming boycott. Back in 2021, Krafton acquired Unknown Worlds, the studio behind the original Subnautica. Last week, the three founders of the studio were let go from the company. There was no explanation provided for the reason behind it. According to Bloomberg, in the acquisition agreement, Krafton would give the developers a $250 million bonus if they reached a specific revenue goal in 2025. Naturally, since Subnautica 2 got delayed until 2026, hitting that revenue goal seems almost impossible now. As a result, many players began to suspect that Krafton had delayed the game to avoid paying the developers.
Then, according to PC Gamer, one of the founders who is no longer part of the studio confirmed that Subnautica 2 is ready to launch in early access, which makes the delay even stranger.
Our community is at the heart of how we develop, so we want to give ourselves a little extra time to respond to more of that feedback before releasing the game into Early Access. With that in mind, we’ve made the decision to delay Subnautica 2’s Early Access release to 2026.
Unknown Worlds Entertainment/Krafton via Steam
Krafton then told PC Gamer that the delay had nothing to do with the contractual obligations with the studio. It claimed that it was purely because they wanted the game to be as polished as possible. Yet, it’s all extremely strange. First, Krafton fires the three founders. Then, it delays the game. Shortly after, one of the former studio heads claims the game is ready to go. Regardless of how you look at it, this doesn’t look great for Krafton. Now, players are already working on a way to stop the publisher from profiting from the sequel.
Players Are Organizing a Boycott On Reddit
Shortly after the news, players created a post on the game’s official subreddit titled, “Do not buy Subnautica 2.” You can see all the comments and how many of the fans feel about Krafton’s management of Unknown Worlds and this sequel.
“Nobody can buy anything right now. What you CAN do is take it off your Steam wishlist (where it is currently the #2 most-wishlisted game on Steam). THAT should send a message.” – databeast via Reddit.
“Wow, this is some really scummy sh*t. I hope the game is still great when it comes out (thankfully it doesn’t seem like the devs have been impacted by this too much), but I do not want to support a company that takes advantage of loopholes like this.“- CatPoint via Reddit.
On the other hand, many players think that Krafton will still profit from the game. Lately, people crave new co-op games, and that is something Subnautica fans have been asking for since Below Zero. If the game launches and it is as great as its predecessor, everyone will end up buying it. Let’s face it, that’s how we are as gamers. Still, it is sad that such a beloved franchise has reached such bleak depths.
It is uncertain if the boycott will happen, but so far, it seems that all Subnautica 2 fans are in an anti-Krafton stance after the delay. It definetely looks suspicious if you look at how fast everything happened. Furthermore, one founder confirming the game was ready to go out of the oven makes everything look worse for the publisher. So, yes, this sequel is on its way to the ocean floor. We’ll have to see if opinions change as we approach the new release window, but by the looks of it, it will take a monumental effort to fix the damage this news has caused.
