Now that Subnautica 2 is finally here, players have been voicing their thoughts on the new survival game – including concerns over its end-user license agreement.
If you haven't read its EULA, Subnautica 2's agreement has a few worrying highlights, as one fan notes on Reddit. These range from not allowing players to use a VPN while playing to, erm, not being allowed to "go against 'social norms'" – whatever that means – and the inability to sue the previous publisher, Krafton.
It's concerning, to say the least, especially amid all the Stop Killing Games discussions online. Folks in the comments share their frustrations surrounding the EULA, dubbing its conditions "an insane overreach" and even "illegal" in regions like Europe.
Well, it's safe to say that the developers have heard their thoughts, thankfully. Over on Subnautica's official Discord server, they've responded directly to a player's question about what the EULA means for fans' autonomy while playing and whether they'll get in trouble for streaming and the like.
Unknown's reply reads, "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 Steam Deck verified), we have nothing that runs outside of the game exe, and we have someone looking into the EULA. You're also welcome to mod the game as long as you follow the rules Donya [community manager] shared a while back."
It's certainly a reassuring message, from the bit about streaming to the mention of no other application running in the background to potentially monitor what players are doing.
On the other hand, it's also nice to hear that the community is welcome to go wild with Subnautica 2 mods, especially as the debate surrounding killing fish and other fan requests continues.
Part of me does wonder whether Krafton, the sequel's original publisher, will also respond, though.
Players seem pleased enough with Unknown's comment, anyway, taking to a thread on the matter to share as much. As one fan puts it, "That's a relief, tbh."