Krafton's CEO asked ChatGPT how to avoid a $250 million payout, and now accuses Subnautica devs of deleting their own AI conversations
The argument between Krafton and the fired creators of the Subnautica series is heating up.
Update (November 19)
Krafton has sent us statements addressing the recent actions of the laid-off developers and the legal proceedings:
There is nothing more important to us than ensuring the players get the best possible experience. We are looking forward to highlighting that all of our decisions have been focused on ensuring Subnautica 2 exceeds the high expectations that come from our players.
We were forced to make a change when the former leaders showed little interest in the development of Subnautica 2, which has always been our top priority. Now, this trial comes down to plaintiffs asking to be restored to jobs they were not doing, said they had no interest in doing, and had previously declined requests that they come back and do those jobs.
As you know, the trial between KRAFTON and former executives for Unknown Worlds began yesterday [November 17th] in Wilmington, Delaware. The first day largely focused on testimony from two of the former executives. While there was a lot covered, I just wanted to flag for you a couple of notable exchanges, where we learned that the former executives, who are asking to be returned to leadership positions, had really been disengaged from the high priority Subnautica 2 game. Charlie Cleveland [and Max McGuire], for example, had no role at all with Subnautica 2, as well as limited (and no more than a part time role) with the company, according to former CEO Ted Gill.
We look forward to continuing to present our evidence before the judge and are confident we will prevail and be allowed to continue our incredible progress.
Original news (November 18)
The conflict between Krafton and the creators of the Subnautica series, who were fired, is intensifying. It's not surprising because there's a $250 million bonus on the line that the laid-off developers were supposed to get if the second part of the series met a certain sales target. Both sides are battling it out in court, bombarding it with more and more motions. The latest one is particularly intriguing.
- Based on documents uncovered during the trial, the studio's founders claim that Krafton decided to fire them only after negotiations to reduce the bonus amount had failed.
- According to them, this challenges Krafton's claim that the founders were let go because they weren't managing the team well. The studio founders think the documents they found show that the publisher set everything up to take over the team and dodge paying the bonus.
- Interestingly, the documents allegedly prove that the Krafton CEO tried to get some advice from ChatGPT, asking the AI for ideas on how to avoid paying the bonus. This reportedly didn't yield good results, as the devs wrote in a court message to the publisher: "ChatGPT advised you that it would be difficult."
- In the lawsuit, the founders are asking for records of all the chats between Krafton's execs and ChatGPT, but the CEO says those conversations have already been deleted. He also responds with a counterattack, accusing these developers of deleting conversations with AI models themselves to destroy evidence.
Krafton and AI
Considering Krafton's CEO's legal consultations with ChatGPT, it's amusing that the company has recently declared its shift to an "AI First" enterprise, focusing heavily on using artificial intelligence in game development. Devs who don't like this direction are offered special severance packages if they voluntarily resign.
The documents also show that things are pretty rough at the Unknown Worlds studio right now, and the developers don't trust the Krafton management at all. The previously existing creative freedom and good relationships have been replaced by an "atmosphere of silence and uncertainty."
Subnautica 2 is currently coming exclusively to PC. The game is set to launch in Early Access next year.
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Author: Adrian Werner
A true veteran of the Gamepressure newsroom, writing continuously since 2009 and still not having enough. He caught the gaming bug thanks to playing on his friend's ZX Spectrum. Then he switched to his own Commodore 64, and after a short adventure with 16-bit consoles, he forever entrusted his heart to PC games. A fan of niche productions, especially adventure games, RPGs and games of the immersive sim genre, as well as a mod enthusiast. Apart from games, he devourers stories in every form - books, series, movies, and comics.
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