Subnautica 2 publishers Krafton may have had to pay Unknown Worlds a massive earn-out, after losing a farcical courtroom battle with ousted studio execs, but they’re tickled pink by the ocean survival game’s sales. According to Krafton’s latest quarter-year financials, Subnautica 2 has sold over five million units since the early access launch.

They’re now trumpeting its potential to become “our second franchise IP” after PUBG, in the words of head of investor relations Sophie Lee, which indicates that they’re not only thinking about a possible Subnautica 3, but eyeing up Subnautica crossovers of all kinds. Think of the merchandising! Alterra lunchboxes! Reaper-branded cans of sardines! Nibbler Mango bodypillows! Maybe some kind of dastardly LLM-piloted luxury submarine!

Speaking to investors, Krafton’s CEO Changhan Kim also noted that around half of the new game’s players didn’t play either the original Subnautica or Subnautica: Below Zero – an influx of fresh Subnauts Krafton attribute partly to the game having a co-op mode. Which is interesting, because Subnautica 2’s co-op focus was controversial before release, with returning players worrying that it would steal focus and resources from the solo experience. Unknown Worlds seem to have put those fears to rest.

“On the new franchise IP front, the early performance of Subnautica 2’s early access launch confirms both our scale-up capabilities and its potential to become our second franchise IP,” comments Lee, in Krafton’s latest shareholder-flummoxing corpofusillade, as transcribed by Stock Analysis. “Subnautica 2 delivered a highly successful early access launch, both in the numbers and in how users responded.” Even as they prioritise “community trust and game quality, maintaining stable service through to full launch”, Krafton also plan to “scale up the Subnautica IP with a long-term perspective”.

With Lee translating, CEO Kim added that “in particular, [Subnautica 2’s] co-op content confirmed the potential to expand beyond the existing fan base to new user groups. This stems from our success in identifying an IP with a strong genre moat and scaling it up by expanding co-op and content volume while preserving the core gameplay of the original.” I think that’s “moat” as in “strong competitive advantage”, though the more usual definition of a defensive ditch full of water sort of chimes with the subject matter.

I’ve enjoyed what I’ve played of Subnautica 2. It has excellently fishy energy. Though it does feel quite a lot like a retread of Subnautica 1. I can’t say I’m gagging for it to become a massive entertainment property – I’m not really gagging for anything to become a massive entertainment property – but departed Unknown Worlds co-founder Charlie Cleveland does make movies nowadays. Perhaps there’s scope for a collaboration, assuming he and Krafton can put all that “million dollar lawsuit” stuff behind them.