With just a day or two to go till Subnautica 2's early access launch, "unofficial builds" of the ocean survival game have leaked onto the internet. Picture a punctured Cyclops submarine slowly filling with illicit video files and screenshots, while Unknown Worlds staff wade around with their repair tools, shrieking "Nothing to see here".

Pictures and footage of the new Subnautica game materialised on Reddit yesterday, care of Redditor DaRealAyman. Here's a duplicate post, as the original one has been taken down. The second poster, Alleexxi, claims DaRealAyman got hold of a build from a reviewer. I promise it wasn't me. I'm on record as saying I can't get the game to work on my potato PC (I do have access to more powerful technology supplied by our lords in Ziff).

Unknown Worlds have now confirmed in a statement to IGN that Subnautica 2 has escaped containment via "unofficial channels". They would be most obliged if you refrain from downloading the files in question. "We’ve identified that unofficial builds of Subnautica 2 are currently circulating online," the statement reads. "These builds are incomplete development versions and do not reflect the content or gameplay experience being prepared for the official release.

"Files distributed through unofficial channels cannot be verified for safety or stability, and certain features or content may not function as intended," the statement goes on. "The complete Subnautica 2 Early Access experience, including multiplayer support, as well as all future patches and updates, will be delivered exclusively through official builds on our partner platforms."

If you're interested in those post-launch plans, Mark has the skinny on the giant squid.

Subnautica 2 getting pirated a few days before launch is yet another blow for a game engulfed in a complicated legal battle between publishers Krafton and certain former/now reinstated Unknown Worlds executives. It follows the leaking of Microsoft car bonanza Forza Horizon 6 a few days ago. I promise we didn't "unofficially distribute" that one either. I don't even know what a car is. Some kind of wheeled submarine, I understand, mostly used for the collection of wristbands?