It wouldn’t be Subnautica 2 if there wasn’t a little bit more controversy to be found, would it? This time it comes in the form of the game’s EULA which, as roughly collated by a post over on the Stop Killing Games subreddit, includes some stipulations that certainly sound a bit sketchy on the face of it, though others also sound like a legal team member playing it overly safe.
For example, the EULA says you’re not allowed to “use IP proxying or other methods to disguise the location of your use or Device,” meaning you can’t use a VPN while playing the game. This will surely be worrying for the digitally cautious out there, though given that this is an online game where access to it can presumably be revoked based on your IP address, I imagine this is why that rule is in place. You also can’t “engage in any acts prohibited by applicable laws or generally unacceptable by social norms,” but whose norms are we talking about?
There’s also a section that goes into ownership, explaining the usual thing of how you don’t actually own the game or anything in it, but it also notes that if you make anything based on the game, or even modify it in some way, the game’s publisher Krafton will own it. This could presumably include fan works like art and the like. Gross, obviously, but also quite a common thing to find in these sorts of agreements, and one I’m not so sure we’ll see changed.
Perhaps the most eyebrow raising point is that “arbitration on an individual basis means that you will not have, and you hereby waive, the right for a judge or jury to decide your claims.” The whole thing is coated in legalese, a language I am not fluent in, but it seems like this one might just be a bit of a scare tactic.
With all that sounds, it does sound like Unknown Worlds will be having another look at the EULA. In the game’s Discord server, one of the studio’s devs responded to some of the concerns over the EULA, namely related to streaming the game and playing on Linux.
“We will obviously never take any action against any player playing the game, streaming it on Twitch or YouTube or in Discord to friends, you can play on Linux with proton (we’re Steamdeck verified), we have nothing that runs outside of the game exe, and we have someone looking into the EULA,” explains the developer. “You’re also welcome to mod the game as long as you follow the rules Donya shared a while back about not selling the mods etc.” So those of you looking to make mods that let you kill the alien fish despite Unknown Worlds saying that’s not really the point are safe, essentially.
