After a year of litigation that resulted in the firing and rehiring of Unknown Worlds CEO Ted Gill, the Korean publisher Krafton Inc. has agreed to pay the entire Subnautica 2 team bonuses in three annual installments.
According to a July 1 Bloomberg report, Krafton Inc. and Unknown Worlds Entertainment have reached a "legal settlement" with the Subnautica 2 studio's CEO Ted Gill and its co-founders. As part of the agreement, Gill has resigned, stating that the two companies--Krafton and Unknown Worlds--are searching for a new CEO outside the companies.
"We mutually agreed to part ways," Gill told Bloomberg News. "New leadership is the best way for the studio to move forward."
Gill explained to Bloomberg that everyone at Unknown Worlds--including those who were there during the Krafton acquisition in 2021 and those recently hired--will be "compensated significantly more" than under the original purchase. How much is unknown, but Gill said that the team will get "further incentives" as Subnautica 2 receives more updates. These bonuses will be paid out in three annual installments.
Unknown Worlds filed a lawsuit against Krafton in July 2025 for refusing to pay out $250 million in bonuses. The drama resulted in Subnautica 2 being delayed and Ted Gill being fired, though a judge ruled in March 2026 that Gill be reinstated, blaming the publisher's CEO for consulting ChatGPT on how to get out of paying the bonuses the studio was reportedly owed. Now, Gill is out once again, but the team's getting paid.
Subnautica 2, which launched on PC and Xbox Series X|S on May 14, hit an impressive player count one day after launch and sold 4 million copies within four days of release. Despite no longer being employed at the company, Gill was proud of the success.
"We're all super excited about Subnautica 2 and its tremendous success," Gill told Bloomberg News on July 1.
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/subnau...ceos-exit/