Subnautica Reviews

One of the all-time great games IMESHO. But now the company that owns it (Krafton) has dumped the original developers, published potentially slanderous unsubstantiated stories about them, and delayed the sequel. All for murky reasons almost certainly to do with prioritising corporate greed over making good games. I absolutely support the original SN developers, who are now suing Krafton over the above, in holding this money-bloated corp. to account, so I can no longer in good faith recommend this game.

After everything thats been coming out, I hope Krafton himself gets eaten by a reaper.

Do not buy this game. Krafton recently did a hostile takeover of the company, pushing the original owners out and delaying Subnautica 2 against their wishes so they wouldn't have to pay the developers and staff any bonuses for the game releasing into EA in 2025. This is some of the most disgusting corporate behavior imaginable, and nobody should support it by buying this game. If you must play it, pirate it.

The publisher of this game just FIRED THE ORIGINAL HEAD DEVELOPERS and PURPOSEFULLY DELAYED SUBNAUTICA 2 purely so that through a loop-hole they wouldn't have to pay the development staff! Can't recommend the game anymore

When Subnautica entered Early Access in 2014, it was a rough experience. Several essential features hadn’t been implemented and technically it was a little shaky. Yet one thing was immediately clear: the game had enormous potential. At the time Unknown Worlds was a small studio facing serious financial pressure, but instead of collapsing, they leaned into the strength of their growing fanbase, by listening closely and working hand in hand with the community and they gradually built an underwater world that would become one of the most atmospheric, beautiful and mysterious in the entire genre. I had a genuinely intense and enjoyable time with Subnautica and I want to thank Charlie Cleveland, Max McGuire, Ted Gill and the other members of the original team. The reason I'm giving the game a thumbs down has nothing to do with the fact that I did encounter some very unpleasant and disruptive bugs, texture glitches or other visual issues, but solely with the situation that the publisher Krafton fired the three founding members and has stripped their work of the integrity it once had. At this point in time, it's utterly impossible to say with absolute certainty what exactly happened, but all signs point to classic evil-corporate behavior. Krafton’s reputation was already controversial even before the Subnautica drama (aggressive monetization strategies, unprofessional communication and production pressure). What’s unfolding now isn’t just legally intriguing; it also serves as yet another reminder of how fragile the balance between creative freedom and commercial pressure can be in the gaming industry. It reminds me a bit of what happened around the game Disco Elysium. Looking back I wish I had already played the game or picked up Below Zero as well, and as much as I was excited for Subnautica 2 it’s painfully obvious that Krafton shouldn’t receive another cent from us. My heartfelt support goes to the devs and I truly hope the legal outcome brings justice and recognition. Edit (07/31/2025) It’s extremely important to me to make a few things absolutely crystal clear, especially because over the past few days I’ve seen a few videos and comments where some people said things like: “I’m not interested in the drama, I just want to play the game” “Boycotting Subnautica 2 only hurts the developers” “Krafton has already backed down” “Review bombing is stupid” To me these kinds of comments are just as shallow and uncritical as: “Spotify isn’t that bad, I like using it” “In Springfield they eat pets” “AI makes inexperienced people better developers” When the founders were apparently fired in early July, and as it seems without any legally valid reason, I was in the final stages of the story. Shortly afterward I was planning to jump straight into Below Zero while looking forward to Subnautica 2 and also preparing what was meant to be a completely positive review. But I made a personal decision to give the game a thumbs down and also not because I had read somewhere that people were calling for a boycott (those posts only started appearing several days later) but simply because my own research showed that Unknown Worlds is not really Unknown Worlds anymore. And Krafton’s contradictory and questionable actions made them seem much more like a Sea Dragon Leviathan to me than the idea that the founders had suddenly turned into money-hungry Warpers, which frankly just doesn’t seem plausible. And honestly for me it’s quite simple: whether Krafton deliberately delayed the release, breached agreements, spread lies and created the whole drama, or the founders themselves messed up in terms of timeline, quality or whatever, either way it’s absolutely legitimate to give the game a thumbs down in response to the whole mess. BUT and I’ll gladly say it again: everything suggests that Krafton acted in shady ways. And if it turns out to be true, then (in a perfect world) they shouldn't get a single cent from us, also supporting the founders was the right move, rather than doing nothing or worse attacking and insulting others. Because a rational discussion never only goes one way.

The publisher has shown their true colors and fired the dev team working on Subnautica 2. I cannot recommend buying this game or any other they publish due to their actions.

KRAFTON fired the CEO and 3 founders of Unknown Worlds Entertainment a week ago and today proceeded to push back the early release of Subnautica 2 to 2026; despite the original founder stating that it is ready for early access release, to avoid paying the developers their $250m bonus if they were to reach specific revenue targets by the end of 2025. With the delay of Subnautica 2, this is likely no longer possible. Subnautica is one of my favorite games with Subnautica 2 being my most anticipated game. I am livid and deeply saddened and will no longer be purchasing it.

Massive shout out to the original devs—Subnautica is one of the most terrifyingly beautiful games I’ve ever touched. As someone with a genuine fear of the ocean, this wasn’t just survival—it was a full-blown anxiety simulator on steroids. I gave it 25+ hours. Unlimited health, infinite oxygen, no creature damage—every safety net activated. Still, that vast, silent, dark-blue abyss had me sweating bullets. The pressure, the darkness, the Reapers? Pure dread. Eventually, I had to use console commands to push through the story—because the alternative was a trip to the hospital. And honestly? No shame. The story deserved to be seen. The world design? Breathtaking. The tension? Absolute masterclass. The modding community? Heroes—adding life-saving QoL tweaks, epic gear, and base tools galore. Reaper Leviathans? Hate them. Their roars, hate it even more. Gargantuan Leviathan mods? I can only watch others face them on YouTube—and even that gives me palpitations. Did I survive the deep? Technically not. Did I conquer my fear? Absolutely not. But this game? Unforgettable.

Krafton fired the original Subnautica 1 devs and delayed the game in order to avoid paying 250 million dollars in bonuses to the remaining dev team of Subnautica 2. They will drive subnautica into the ground due to corporate greed.

I love this game its absolutely one of my favorite games, easily my favorite survival horror/underwater horror game i am just using this review to talk about the shitty stuff happening with krafton and unknown worlds (that i hope gets worked out) as of making this review the original CEO, CFO and the Cofounders of unknown worlds were fired, seemingly out of nowhere this was then followed up not even a full day after with krafton coming out saying that subnautica 2 would be relesed in 2026 this was (most likely) due to a deal krafton made when they baught unknown worlds that wouldve had a payout for 250 million to the entire unknown worlds team if they had managed to make some amount of money by the end of 2025 and now that they delayed subnautica 2 its very likely that they wont be able to make that amount this has most recently been followed up with the original subnautica devs saying that they are looking into their legal options and figuring out how to sue krafton for this scetchy messed thing god i hope that everything works out but as of now, DO NOT WISHLIST subnautica 2, its not doing anything but making krafton think oh well we can just do this and it doesnt matter cuz we still get the same amount of pay anyways this was just meant to be informational thanks