Subnautica 2 drives Krafton's record Q2 revenue despite $250 million earnout hit

Krafton just posted its best-ever second quarter results, and Subnautica 2 is the main reason why. The publisher reported Q2 revenue of KRW 1.29 trillion and operating profit of KRW 410.9 billion — both all-time highs for a second quarter. PC revenue broke KRW 500 billion for the first time. Console and mobile revenue also rose year-over-year, but PC is clearly doing the heavy lifting.

Krafton credited "the success of Subnautica 2 and steady growth of the PUBG IP" as the primary drivers in its press release. The game hit 5 million copies sold earlier this month, a remarkable number for an early access survival title. That said, the record operating profit doesn't tell the whole story — net profit is actually in the red, showing a deficit of KRW 29.9 billion. The $250 million earnout owed to Unknown Worlds, plus the original acquisition cost, has eaten into the bottom line hard.

The road to those sales figures was anything but smooth. Krafton fired Unknown Worlds' leadership in 2025, accusing them of abandoning the project. The studio heads hit back, alleging Krafton deliberately delayed the early access launch to dodge the $250 million earnout — a plan reportedly conceived with help from ChatGPT. A judge forced Krafton to reinstate Unknown Worlds CEO Ted Gill and extend the earnout window. Krafton then announced an early access release almost immediately after, which Gill publicly called a final sabotage attempt. Despite all of it, the game launched, sold millions, and Unknown Worlds staff will receive their bonuses. Gill has since left the studio voluntarily — his work done.

Krafton is clearly trying to move past the chaos by leaning into the win, and the revenue numbers give them something real to celebrate. But spending more than you earn while posting record operating profit is a strange place to be, and the legal and reputational fallout from the dispute isn't fully behind them yet.