When some players were studying the user license agreement of “Subnautica 2 (Deep Sea Adventure 2)”, they discovered a clause that caused heated discussion. The general idea of this clause is: If a third party files a claim for intellectual property infringement compensation against the developer due to the content displayed during live broadcast or filming, then the user must compensate the developer in full. As soon as this regulation came out, it immediately triggered intense discussions among live broadcasters and content creators.
Infringement compensation? Doesn’t that mean we can’t play this game live?
For creators who often show game content in live broadcasts, this clause puts them at a potential financial risk. If content that may have copyright issues is accidentally displayed during a live broadcast, causing the developer to be pursued by a third party, the creator may have to bear huge compensation. This logic makes many people feel that “this is equivalent to the creator paying for the developer’s risk control errors”!
The development team said it was not used to deal with live broadcasters!
Unknown Worlds Entertainment responded to the controversy, stating that the clause was never intended to target live streamers or content creators. They emphasized that this is a protective clause to prevent intentional infringement by interested parties, and is not intended to make creators responsible for developers’ decisions. They also said they would “never take any action against the streamer” and were listening to other concerns in the community.
The Impact of This EULA Controversy on Subnautica 2
Fortunately, the development team responded quickly enough, and most of the players’ concerns have now been put to rest. But this incident also reminds us that the terms in legal documents such as EULA often produce different interpretations when ordinary people read them, especially when these terms seem to be detrimental to the creator.