As a gamer, I’ve been keeping tabs on the ongoing dispute between Krafton, the game publisher, and Subnautica’s original developers, Unknown Worlds. Recently, the new CEO at Unknown Worlds, Steve Papoutsis, has publicly disagreed with the lawsuit filed by the studio’s co-founders, Charlie Cleveland, Ted Gill, and Max McGuire. In a recent chat with GamesRadar, Papoutsis, who stepped into the role this month, expressed his viewpoint that Krafton is not withholding the money they owe to the studio and its founders.
In legal action, the co-creators of Unknown Worlds accuse Krafton of withholding a $250 million payment to the studio and its founders, by repeatedly delaying the launch of Subnautica 2. Papoutsis expressed that Krafton has only provided empty promises to the studio instead.
Papoutsis stated, “From my perspective, what I was led to believe when invited to join and aid the team by Krafton was solely about fostering a fantastic game.
I’ve always prioritized three things: dedication to the players, fostering creativity, and delivering an Early Access product that matches player expectations. These are the discussions I’ve had and they’re a big reason why I was comfortable taking on this role.
During the interview, Papoutsis discussed his perspective as CEO at Unknown Worlds, viewing his role more as a supporting one. He pointed out that the studio didn’t require “creative direction,” but rather, his primary focus was to assist daily in planning the development of Subnautica 2.
He stated, “I won’t be joining a scenario that requires innovative guidance. They seem to have that aspect handled. What they require is someone to manage the daily development strategy, and it appears they already have that arranged.
I’ll be joining to assist in various ways across our organization, focusing on non-development aspects related to our project. This includes monitoring for relevant matters, ensuring partnership alignment, and collaborating with others outside of the development team. Whenever appropriate, I’ll also share my knowledge and expertise with the team.
Papoutsis mentioned that he’s not planning on disrupting the current development process. Instead, they have an innovative vision, and a talented group of developers. What’s needed here is identifying opportunities for me to contribute and assist the team in all aspects of development, rather than intruding into existing situations.
Tensions between Krafton and the co-founders of Unknown Worlds escalated when it was decided to delay the Early Access launch of Subnautica 2 by a year. Since then, the publisher has acknowledged that there was a lack of key leadership within the studio, and confirmed that the leaked documents revealing a significant amount of content missing from the game were authentic.
In the course of the legal dispute, the three initial founders allege that Krafton has been prolonging the release of Subnautica 2 through a series of actions spanning several months. For a comprehensive look at this conflict between the developer and the publisher, follow our analysis.
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2025-07-18 15:41