The announcement of the departure of historic figures from Unknown Worlds has shook the development of Subnautica 2. After the departure of Charlie Cleveland (founder of the studio) and David Kalina (creative co-director), it was the main producer who left the project, in full transition to a new cooperative game model. An orientation that worries part of the community, fearing that Krafton, Korean parent company, wants to maximize the monetization of the title, even if it means making a service game.
Faced with the growing misunderstanding of players and the multiplication of criticisms on social networks and discord, Unknown Worlds published an open letter to its community on July 2, 2025, in the hope of clarifying the management taken by Subnautica 2. This message, signed by the remaining teams of the studio, aims to defuse the controversies linked to the structural transformation of the project. Originally designed as a follow -up faithful to the narrative and solitary codes of the first opus, Subnautica 2 will finally adopt a cooperative approach to four players.
In this letter, Unknown Worlds claims that the project will remain a lonely survival experience above all, and that there will be no microtransactions in the game: “Nothing has changed in the structure of the game. It will remain above all a solo experience, with an optional cooperative multiplayer mode. No subscription. No loot boxes. No Battle Pass. No microtransactions.” . The studio specifies that the multiplayer will not come to the detriment of the atmosphere, exploration or environmental narration that made the success of the series. The declared objective is to preserve the singularity of Subnautica while adapting it to a cooperative format.
The authors recognize, however, that the recently announced departures were able to worry the players. But Subnautica 2 Will arrive well, as expected, in Early Access on Steam before the end of 2025. To reassure the most skeptical players, the studio also announces the upcoming line of a roadmap, specifying the short and medium term objectives of development.
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