Court tells Subnautica 2 publisher Krafton to reinstate fired CEO and let him handle its Early Access release

March 16, 2026 - 18:15

A California court has ordered Krafton to immediately reinstate the fired CEO of Unknown Worlds, the studio behind the upcoming Subnautica 2. The ruling states that the publisher terminated the game’s leadership “without valid cause,” forcing a dramatic reversal just as the project enters a critical phase.

The legal decision mandates that the CEO be returned to his position with full authority to manage the studio and, specifically, to oversee the impending Early Access release of the highly anticipated survival sequel. This injects significant uncertainty into the game’s development timeline and public rollout plans, which are now back under the control of the original leadership team.

This ruling highlights a fierce internal dispute over the creative and operational direction of the franchise. The court’s intervention suggests the studio’s founders presented compelling evidence that their dismissal was unjustified. For now, the future of Subnautica 2 rests once again with the visionaries originally guiding its development, though the long-term relationship between Unknown Worlds and its corporate publisher remains deeply fractured. The gaming community now watches closely to see how this leadership upheaval will affect the game’s journey through Early Access.