Korean games firm Krafton has bumped Subnautica 2 to 2026. 

Bloomberg reports that this would free the publisher from a contractual obligation to pay out $250 million in bonuses to the game's development team, something that Krafton has denied. 

“It was not influenced by any contractual or financial considerations,” the company said.

This news also comes hot on the heels of Krafton replacing the management of developer Unknown Worlds with company veteran Steve Papoutsis. 

"During playtests for Subnautica 2, we received valuable feedback from our community that reinforced our confidence in the game's direction. At the same time, the feedback highlighted a few areas that could benefit from further refinement before release," a rep for Krafton told Eurogamer.  

"As community voices play a central role in how we shape our games, we've made the decision to give the development team more time to implement that feedback and deliver a more complete experience. As a result, Subnautica 2's Early Access launch has been rescheduled for 2026."