Subnautica 2 studio Unknown Worlds has seen key members of its leadership team – including Charlie Cleveland, who was game director on the original Subnautica – ‘replaced’ by owner Krafton, just months before the underwater survival sequel’s long-awaited early access release.
Krafton, which acquired Unknown Worlds in 2021, announced the leadership changes in a press release. Cleveland – who founded the studio in 2001 and has variously served as designer, programmer, team lead, chief executive office, and franchise creative director since then – is out, alongside chief executive officer Ted Gill, and special projects director Max McGuire.
Krafton did not specify a reason for the departures in its announcement, but claimed it had “sought to keep the Unknown Worlds’ co-founders and original creators of the Subnautica series involved in the game’s development”. All three have been replaced by Steve Papoutsis, who’ll oversee the Subnautica developer while maintaining his current role as CEO at Krafton’s The Callisto Protocol studio Striking Distance. “The company wishes [Cleveland, Gill, and McGuire] well on their next endeavours,” Krafton added.
There are, however, hints throughout Krafton’s statement that it wasn’t happy with Unknown Worlds’ planned timeline for the development of Subnautica 2. There are references to owing “our players nothing less than the best possible game, as soon as possible”, as well as talk of “delivering the right game at the right time” using “clearly defined metrics and targets”. New Unknown Worlds boss Papoutsis is said to “fully [support] this process”. Unknown Worlds had previously announced Subnautica 2 was – much like its highly acclaimed proginator – anticipated to remain in early access for two to three years.
Subnautica 2 (actually the third game in the acclaimed series, following 2021’s standalone Subnautica expansion Below Zero), was confirmed to be in the works back in 2022. A first cinematic trailer finally arrived last October, tipping a nod to the sequel’s new co-op mode, and additional details have slowly emerged since then in the run-up to Subnautica 2’s planned early access release later this year.
So far, Unknown Worlds has aired small snippets of gameplay, and confirmed some of the things players can expect to see in Subnautica 2. The sequel will, for instance, ditch Below Zero’s controversially chatty lead and return to the silent protagonist approach of the first game. That’s alongside the introduction of a brand-new ocean planet promising “all-new mysteries, creatures, and experiences”, customisable characters, new vehicles, and more.
Subnautica 2 doesn’t have an early access release date yet, but when we last heard from Unknown Worlds the aim was still to launch it sometime this year.