The owner of a leaked copy of Subnautica 2 appears to have accidentally revealed themselves — after contacting the game’s developer for support.
Hit underwater adventure Subnautica 2 launched this week in early access, though after illegitimate and unfinished copies of the game began circulating online.
At the time, developer Unknown Worlds acknowledged in a statement to IGN that leaked copies were now being downloaded, though cautioned that these were “incomplete development versions” that “do not reflect the content or gameplay experience being prepared for the official release.”
It’s unclear exactly what issue the leaked copy owner contacted Unknown Worlds about, but it seems clear enough that they were trying to play an incomplete version of the game, and a staff member quickly wised up.
“It took some doing, but this guy self-reported,” Unknown Worlds developer Anthony Gallegos said of the user via the game’s official Discord (as spotted by RespawnFirst). “Thanks for pirating a game that I’ve spent years working on. I’m disappointed that you’d do that when it’s kind of how we make our living. I hope you rethink your life choices.”
“Just to be clear, pirates are gonna do their thing. We were all kids once,” Gallegos continued later. “Money and the economy is very hard. I get it. It wasn’t the piracy that bothered me. It was the people that flagrantly walked in here and wagged it in the faces of people who were waiting to play legitimately. That was the part that aggravated me.
“I understand and thank you for supporting the studio ultimately. I cannot condone piracy, but I get why people do. I would much rather people buy the game, try it for an hour, and return it than go play it illicitly.”
News that illegitimate copies of Subnautica 2 were being spread online bizarrely followed several other high profile video game leaks in quick succession, including at least one user being able to access their pre-ordered copy of LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight days early.
Then, earlier this week, Forza Horizon 6 developer Playground Games issued a dramatic warning to anyone found playing a leaked build of Xbox’s new racing blockbuster. Those found doing so risked incurring “franchise-wide and hardware bans”, the studio said, and one player subsequently reported receiving a hardware ban until the year 10,000.
Still, the leaks don’t seem to have sunk Subnautica 2 — quite the opposite. Already, the game has sold a stunning 2 million copies within 12 hours of its early access arrival. Peak concurrent players across all launch platforms exceeded 651,000, with Steam alone reaching a peak of more than 467,000 concurrent players. That’s nearly nine times the all-time peak concurrent player count of the original Subnautica, which launched in 2018.
And Unknown Worlds has just released the Subnautica 2 early access roadmap, detailing what fans can expect over the next few months. We’ve got a Things to Do First in Subnautica 2 guide to check out before you dive in, plus resource location guides to help you find Titanium, Silver, and more. Discover blackbox and supply crate locations on our interactive Subnautica 2 map, and make sure you don’t miss any Angel Comb Adaptations or Blueprints.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
