Maybe what they say is true: there’s no such thing as bad publicity. Subnautica 2 has been in the news almost constantly thanks to a well-documented legal fight between developer Unknown Worlds and publisher Krafton. Now, the game is out in Early Access and it has destroyed the first game’s numbers.
On social media, the official Subnautica account announced a whopping 1m copies sold, but then developer Unknown Worlds updated that number just 12 hours later, revealing it had surpassed 2m copies sold in just a few days.
Over on Steam, the game hit a peak player count of 467,582, absolutely destroying the first game’s peak of just over 50,000. In fact, Subnautica 2’s insane numbers means it toppled the likes of the recent Windrose and Crimson Desert.
And the numbers are even more impressive when you account for the fact that Subnautica 2 is available via Game Pass as well.
On top of that, the Steam reviews so far are hugely positive.
All in all, then, it’s good news for developer Unknown Worlds, especially since they are supposed t0 get a $250-million bonus, which was allegedly one of the biggest reasons behind the legal battle.
The payout became the centre of a messy legal fight between Unknown Worlds and publisher Krafton after the studio’s leadership alleged they were removed and the game delayed to avoid triggering a $250 million earnout tied to Subnautica 2 hitting performance targets. Earlier this year, a Delaware court sided with the developers, reinstated CEO Ted Gill and extended the deadline for hitting those targets to September 2026, effectively putting the bonus back on the table — and given the game’s explosive Early Access debut, Unknown Worlds suddenly looks to have a very real shot at cashing in.
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