Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
Subnautica 2 to test Krafton's long-term growth capability
A promotional image for Subnautica 2 / Courtesy of Krafton
By Nam Hyun-woo
Krafton will launch its highly anticipated adventure game Subnautica 2 through early access on May 15, in what could become a defining moment for the company’s long-term growth beyond its global hit PUBG: Battlegrounds franchise.
Subnautica 2 is an underwater survival action title developed by Unknown Worlds Entertainment, a U.S. game studio acquired by Krafton in 2021. The franchise’s first title, Subnautica, has surpassed 18 million cumulative global sales since its release in 2018, while the sequel has remained at the top of gaming platform Steam’s global wish list rankings for the past nine consecutive months.
Subnautica 2 is set on a different alien planet and introduces four-player cooperative mode for the first time in the series, allowing players to explore and develop survival strategies together. While the original game was built on the Unity engine, the sequel was developed using Unreal Engine 5. The game will be released on PC and Xbox Series X and Series S.
Subnautica 2 has long been central to discussions about Krafton’s upcoming release pipeline, but its path to launch has been overshadowed by legal disputes between the publisher and the founding members of Unknown Worlds.
Last year, Krafton dismissed the studio’s former management, arguing that they had failed to fully commit to the development of Subnautica 2. The former executives filed a lawsuit, claiming they had been unfairly fired. The dispute was largely resolved after a U.S. court ruled in March that former CEO Ted Gill should be reinstated and regain control over development, paving the way for the game’s early access release.
A screen grab of Subnautica 2 early access cinematic trailer / Captured from YouTube
Subnautica 2 carries added significance in Krafton’s portfolio. Despite reporting record-breaking sales in recent years, the company has been dogged by market concerns over its revenue reliance on the PUBG franchise, while its efforts to diversify its portfolio through new intellectual property (IP) have yet to bear fruit.
“Krafton remains heavily concentrated on the PUBG-based IP within its game portfolio, while the performance of multiple new titles based on global mega-IP has yet to become clearly visible,” Kiwoom Securities analyst Kim Jin-koo said.
“The traffic and revenue from the PUBG franchise may face short-term risks due to new game launches by competitors. … The company needs to demonstrate a higher corporate value through the establishment of a multi-IP structure backed by major new game releases.”
Kim projected that Subnautica 2 would sell 5 million copies in the second quarter of this year. Given the title is priced at 33,700 won, this could generate around 168.5 billion won in revenue.
The game’s break-even point has not been disclosed, but Krafton has reportedly committed to paying up to $250 million in bonuses to Unknown Worlds upon achieving certain milestones. Given these factors, the profitability threshold is likely set at a relatively high level beyond development costs.
Unknown Worlds expects the early access period to last two to three years. The full version is expected to be priced higher upon official launch, becoming an additional boost to its revenue.
If Subnautica 2 proves successful, it could also help lift Krafton’s stock price. Krafton shares hit a 52-week high of 393,000 won on May 7, 2025, but is now trading between 270,000 won and 280,000 won, closing at 270,000 won on Thursday.