this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2025
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So from what I understand. That 250$ million bonus to "employees" was almost all going to like 3 people. The smaller bonus that was going to actual employees, they said they would honor it anyways.
I'm happy those three founders gave us the first subnautica, but I'd rather a better game on release then something rushed so they get a payday (they also already got paid when they sold their company in any case).
Really hard to say who is in the right without having gameplay footage or real details, but it wouldn't surprise me if it does need more time and it was going to come out as a mess.
Well first, this deal was part of that sale. That'd be like someone's boss pocketing a tip and telling the waitress "you don't deserve this tip you already got paid" or a salesman "you get something hourly, why would you need this commission?"
They worked for it, after the sale, because it was in their contract.
That said, the company didn't even say it was a mess. They said that they needed something like, one more biome, one more leviathan, a few bits and bobs like that. Requirements that they added on later in development, that those three guys say aren't needed.
I really wanna hear from the other devs, the ones under the 3. Theirs is the opinion I'd trust in this mess. But I'm leaning towards corporate fuckery, personally.
Krafton has claimed they asked for 30% more content for the early access version, which isn't that minimal.
Depends how much content there was.
10 hours? 100 hours? Adding 3 isn't much, adding 30 is quite a lot.
If they really were rushing then maybe there wasn't that much content already and asking 30% wasn't to unrealistic.
It's a lot of money. There are huge incentives on both sides to do the wrong thing (either delay a finished game or push out something half baked).
That being said, the current course of action, regardless of justification, is actually going to get us a better game in the end. So there is a sunny side to it for the consumer, which is kind of really rare when you think about it.
I would also love to hear from other workers.
Eh, I'm not sure about that. Sure, a more complete initial launch (probably still early access), but will 1.0 be better, or after that? Part of what made previous games good was getting user feedback early in early access. Sure, they played less complete versions, but it allowed them to direct where the game was heading sooner.
Also, how much does this hurt morale of the team? Are they still going to care about the project as much with their owners fucking around with the project? If they don't care as much, the final product is almost certainly worse.
They are still releasing it in early access it seems, they are just delaying it.
The team is still getting paid their bonus, and they have more time to implement more things before the early access release from what I understand.
I kind of prefer my games delayed. Maybe its ready to leave now and the delay is a big scam but all im seeing is less pressure on the team making it and more content. For the rest, they can figure it out in court.
Yeah, that's what I said.
I assume the planned release date for 1.0 is staying the same though. This doesn't buy them any more time. It only delays the time where they'd get feedback from the community. You can always wait for early access to be over if you want. This is all that was delayed, not 1.0.
What about this clusterfuck gives you the impression that this will improve the game beyond where it's already at?
The fact that it's getting delayed to add content?
if I was told my bonus isn't coming I would immediately start slacking
That's the thing tho, they said they would honor the bonus for every employee except those three. Granted the three were getting the lionshare of the bonus, almost all of it, so the publisher is still saving money but they aren't screwing over the actual people making the game in regards to this.
We get a delayed release with more content which is usually a good thing imo. Worse case scenario is three dudes getting screwed out of half of their 500$ million paycheck. Just pointing out that it isn't a bad situation per say for consumers. If the game was lacking, we are being done a favor.
You really need to start paying attention. The founders were already going to split the money between the entire crew, this isn't about quality control, and EA isn't supposed to be a major polished release.
Source saying the founders were gonna take the 225 million they were getting out of the 250 and spreading it with their crew?
Krafton said they were gonna pay the 25 million of the bonus meant for the crew regardless from what I understand, I think you are getting your facts mixed up (and being condescending about it).
No, I'm not. Almost all the coverage of this mentions the founders intentions to spread the bonus around at least in passing.
https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/report-subnautica-2-is-delayed-potentially-costing-devs-a-250m-bonus-payout is one example.
Your article doesn't seem to mention it but I did find one that did. They aren't "splitting" it. They said they would give some money to the employees not eligible for the bonus. It might be like a 50 dollar gift card for all we know.
The 25 million is still going towards the employees as well, the official one in the contract (this part isn't up to the founders, they don't have control on the 25 mil).
I'm not sure what difference that makes towards what I'm saying? We dont know if the game is half baked or not. The courts can decide, but at least, we get a game with more content.
You're the one that focused on the money
Early Access is being delayed. They were releasing early access to let users give feedback. Now that feedback will be delayed, which allows them to make mistakes that may have been avoidable if they heard from players sooner.
When two parties sign a contract then they have to act in good faith. Preventing the other party from fulfilling their obligations to avoid a payout or invoke a penalty is not good faith. And that's why the sea witch Ursula's contract with the mermaid Ariel would not have held up in court.
Maybe the game would make more money during it's life span if released later but that's irrelevant when there's a contract about how much money the game should make before a certain cut off date.
We currently don't know which party is acting in bad faith. The publishers could be delaying to avoid the payout or the 3 founders could be rushing to get the payout. It's true that a shit half baked game would ruin the series and cause damages, if there is an actual lack of content, there is justification in delaying it.
I guess we will get a clearer picture as the lawsuits draw to a close and the game is released.
Rushing to get the payout is not bad faith. That's the terms of the contract.
I'm certain there are clauses that demand a certain level of content and quality.
No, that's what the income requirement is for. Are you telling me you would buy it even if they shipped a half-baked piece of shit product and all the reviewers told you so?
Edit: I think you are confusing your desire for a good game with the legal dispute
Yeah, the three fired heads owned 90% of the shares, so they got $225M from the initial sale, and were due to get another $225M from the bonuses. That's why Krafton still paid out $25M in bonuses after the uproar.