With the turbulent dispute between Krafton and Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds heading to court this week, a startling new legal document alleges that Krafton’s CEO talked about acquiring the studio in Slack chats, and supposedly even used ChatGPT “to help him come up with ideas for avoiding the earnout payment.”
The entire leadership of Unknown Worlds was dismissed amidst a chaotic public disagreement concerning a $250 million bonus from its parent company, Krafton. For several months, most news regarding the sequel has centered on the acrimonious split between Unknown Worlds’ founders and Krafton, which bought Unknown Worlds in October 2021. During the summer, reports emerged indicating that Subnautica 2’s early access launch was pushed back to 2026, merely months before Krafton was obligated to pay a $250 million bonus to the development team, “against the wishes of the studio’s previous leadership.”
Krafton responded to the lawsuit submitted by former leaders of Subnautica 2, Charlie Cleveland and Max McGuire, providing counterarguments to the developers’ accusations and asserting they “turned to legal action to demand a multimillion-dollar payout they haven’t deserved.” Subsequently, last month, Unknown Worlds itself initiated legal action against its founders Cleveland, former CEO Ted Gill, and studio co-founder Max McGuire for supposedly stealing game design files not long before their termination.
Now, in fresh legal filings, the founders claim Krafton CEO CH Kim and Unknown Worlds’ newly appointed CFO Richard Yoon discussed a possible acquisition via Slack, and reportedly employed ChatGPT to brainstorm methods for evading the bonus payment, as well as establishing a “secret task force” to take control of the studio.
“Leading up to this decision, Krafton CEO CH Kim had grown dissatisfied with the agreement Krafton entered into to purchase Unknown Worlds. From his perspective, it had become a disadvantageous deal for Krafton — one ‘under which [Krafton] is left with no choice but to be led by the nose,'” the document states.
“Krafton formed a clandestine task force known as ‘Project X,’ with a clear mission: either negotiate a ‘deal’ with the Founders regarding the ‘earnout’ or carry out a ‘Take Over’ of Unknown Worlds. When the Founders declined to give in to Krafton’s stipulations, Krafton took action.
“[Maria Park, Krafton’s global head of corporate development] informed Kim that ‘the earn-out will highly likely still be paid if the sales target is achieved, regardless of the dismissal with cause,’” the new filing further states. “Kim sought the assistance of artificial intelligence to generate ideas on how to avoid paying the earnout. ChatGPT also advised that it would be ‘difficult to cancel the earn-out.’”
The cofounders claim that Krafton declined to “produce the ChatGPT conversations,” later stating “they are no longer available.”
The filing also endeavors to reinforce Unknown Worlds’ claims that Subnautica 2 was indeed prepared for its intended soft launch, asserting that Unknown Worlds’ playtest data, presented to Krafton in May, “demonstrated that the game aligned with player expectations.” Moreover, Krafton’s “own internal expert declared that the planned 2025 release would be most advantageous (and that terminating Ted Gill would lead to a multi-year development delay),” and Maria Park indicated “the game was primed for an August launch.”
In a statement to the media, Krafton conveyed: “Nothing is more vital to us than guaranteeing that players have the optimal experience. We are eager to underscore that all our choices have been directed at ensuring Subnautica 2 surpasses the elevated expectations of our players.”
“We were compelled to institute a change when the former leaders displayed minimal interest in the development of Subnautica 2, which has consistently been our foremost concern. Now, this trial boils down to the plaintiffs requesting reinstatement to roles they were not fulfilling, expressed no desire to fulfill, and had previously rejected requests to return and fulfill those roles.”
“Krafton is still concentrating on what is essential: providing Subnautica enthusiasts with the finest game imaginable.”
Regarding Subnautica 2 specifically, developer Unknown Worlds recently unveiled a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a brand-new deep-sea predator, and “how the team has harnessed Unreal Engine 5 AI for realistic behavior, real-time responses, and intense encounters for players.” This 10-minute vlog represents one of the initial development updates we’ve received since the commencement of legal disputes during the summer.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
