If i had to describe the situation Subntika 2 In just three words, it will be: messy, messy, messy. It is not to say that the game is in the terrible shape – it is actually an important claim in the entire situation – but the Sabnutica series developer is in the unknown world and its original company, Kraftan, in Krafton, Shreds. This month alone, Krafton fired the founders and CEOs of the unknown world, Subntika 2 By 2026, delayed and excluded leaders filed a case against Crafton, who was looking to regain the creative control of sports and studios. The center of the conflict has a bonus payment of up to $ 250 million.
There is a randon here how we reached here and what is happening in the devil Subntika 2Crafton and unknown world.
Charlie Cleveland accidentally launched an unknown world in 2001, while producing popular half life Model natural selection And Natural Selection 2And Technical Director Max McGire came in 2006 as the co-founder of an official studio. Mincraft And burnt on the modes, the unknown world started working on the Undergroup, Open-World Exploration Game Sabnotica And it was released in the initial access to Steam in 2014. With years of community reaction, the game developed in a uniquely stressful and rich existence experience, and version 1.0 officially landed in 2018. This is also when Ted Gill joined the working team of the studio, freeing Cleveland to focus on the creative direction. Sabnotica And its spin-off, Subntika: below zeroDraw millions of players and founded an unknown world as a successful independent team.
Therefore, the big studios came smelling. Pubg Publisher Crafton, who works with billions of dollars annually, bought the unknown world in 2021 for $ 500 million. The acquisition came with an additional payment promise of up to $ 250 million if the unknown world killed some performance goals by the end of 2025. This bonus is an important piece of chaos today.
We know more about the details of this deal thank you for recent reporting In addition to the positions of the leadership, which were filled by Cleveland, Gill and McGiyar, there were about 40 employees in the unknown world at the time of Crafton Sale, and they received payments at a total of $ 50 million and in the next two years. This larger group was ready to receive as $ 25 million in 2025 performance-based earnings, each person expected a separate amount, but most of the six or seven figures estimate. The remaining $ 225 million was reserved for the leadership of the unknown world, but he said that he intended to share a portion of his windfall with employees who were not involved in the bonus, covering the full studio headcon of about 100 people.
The leadership of the unknown world reiterated the promise in a trial filed against Crafton on July 10, 2025. But we are moving ahead of ourselves.
After the acquisition, the unknown world continued updating Sabnotica And below zeroIn February 2024, studio released ChandbrekerA turn-based strategy game that has never happened, partly because of this Since then, the studio has been focused on Subntika 2The game was with a potentially initial access launch window of 2025. This is currently the second most comfortable game on steam, later Hollow Knight: Silksong,
The first public perception that something rotten between the unknown world and Crafton came on 2 July, when Cleveland, Gill and McGir were fired and were replaced by the East Colisto protocol Studio Head Steve Papoutis. Crafton did not provide a reason for switch-up Instead offering the following almost full idea: “While Krafton demanded to keep the original creators of the unknown world co-founders and the Sabentica series involved in the development of the game, the company wishes them well on its next efforts.”
Crafton did not mention the delay in the early access launch at this time, but implemented a review process, stating that it would be “necessary to give the right game at the right time”. The publisher suggested that the excluded leaders were non -cooperative in this aspect.
“The new leadership of the unknown world fully supports this process and is committed to the player’s expectations,” its press release said.
Cleveland published On July 4, reflecting its time in the development of the game, and sharing his disappointment in the handling of the unknown world of Crafton and Subntika 2He also referred to Crafton’s intentions to delay the launch.
Cleveland wrote, “You can see why Max, Ted, for the team of the unknown world and our community, why this week’s events have been quite shocked.” “We know that the game early access is ready for release and we know you are ready to play it. And when we thought it is going to make our decision, at least for now, this decision is in the hands of Crafton. And after all these years, to find out that I am not able to work in the company that I started sting.”
On July 9, Crafton officially Of Subntika 2 By 2026. The same day, Bloomberg Published a report underlining the performance-based bonus agreement and clearly questioned that the delay time would make it difficult for the studio to hit its goals, making the payment in danger. This was the first time the details of the bonus became public.
Engadget- and in a pop-up with krafton -On July 10, the leaders directly accused them of leaving the studio in favor of personal creative activities, especially calling Cleveland It also threw the shadow Chandbreker And claimed that the former boss bonus paid “for himself”.
The statement said, “Crafton made several requests to resume his roles as a game director and technical director respectively, but both refused to do so.” “In particular, after failure ChandbrekerCrafton asked Charlie to dedicate himself to development Subntika 2However, instead of participating in the development of the game, he chose to focus on an individual film project. Crafton believes that the absence of the main leadership resulted in frequent confusion in the direction and the overall project schedule has been delayed significantly. The current initial access version is also low in terms of content volume. ,
On the same day, Cleveland announced that he and other excluded studio heads were against Crafton.
Cleveland wrote, “A multicolored dollar company was definitely not in my bucket list in a painful, public and possibly prevalent manner.” “But it needs to be made right. Subnatika has been the work of my life and I will never leave it or the wonderful team that has put his hearts in it. To earn, for earning, the idea that Max, TED and I wanted to keep it completely untrue for myself.”
The trial was not held till 16 July. But on 15 July, It is reported that Crafton now planned to expand the window for bonus payment from an additional year, giving the studio more time to hit its goals. The publisher will allegedly carry forward a separate benefit-sharing bonus pool for all unknown world employees in 2025.
These tricks are designed to rob the main issues raised in violation of the complaint of the contract that Cleveland and other unknown world leaders filed against Crafton in the Delaware Chancery Court. The case was rejected on 16 July, claims that Crafton illegally fired studio heads and delayed Subntika 2 To avoid bonus payment. This year offers a timidal of increasing tension between founders and crafts, alleging deliberate sabotage on the publisher.
The lawsuit claims that Crafton and the unknown world had a respectable relationship till April 2025, when Gill presented Crafton officials with positive revenue estimates of the studio, which was done with the assumption that Subntika 2 Will hit the initial access in 2025. He also underlined the required bonus payment under the agreement.
“When this happened, everything changed,” reads the case.
The complaint alleged that at this point, Crafton began looking for ways to force unidentified world leaders and delay launch Subntika 2With the goal of bypassing bonus payment. Cleveland, Gill and McGiyar argued with Crafton officials whether the game was ready for early access, and Krafton eventually pulled all his resources from the studio. Krafton issued a stop order Subntika 2 Development captured the communication channels of the unknown world and in June, it began laying an internal paper trail, accusing the founders of leaving their Feduri duties.
Cleveland, Gill and McGir were fired and fired on 1 July from the Unknown Worlds Board of Directors. This is the place where the rest of us entered the story.
The main struggle here is over or not Subntika 2 In fact an initial access is ready for launch, and it matters due to a potential $ 250 million bonus payment that is in danger late. This is not only a large amount for Crafton’s losing, but it is also a large -scale money for Cleveland, Gill and McGuare, especially now that they have lost their studio and tentpol IP. The evicted leaders reiterated in their trial that they were contracted compared to “planned to share even more of earning with their dedicated teams”. In the complaint, they are looking for Crafton to pay an approximate full bonus without a delay, fulfill their obligations as a publisher and restore them as heads of the unknown world.
In this situation every party claims that they want what is best Subntika 2 And its players. It is possible that they are all telling the truth and this is a simple disagreement on artistic integrity. It is also possible that they are all lying and everyone is looking to make a quick deer – but the man, it is foggy. Truth, as usual, is likely to have anywhere else, there is a possibility, we will never know it. At least the court system will eventually be able to determine the second best thing, which is a mistake.
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