The CEO of blockchain game development studio Gunzilla Games has posted a lengthy and defiant response to claims that the studio doesn’t pay its contractors.
Gunzilla Games is the creator of NFT battle royale game Off The Grid, and blockchain platform Gunz. The studio has the backing of Hollywood director Blomkamp (District 9, Chappie), who is credited as co-founder and Chief Creative Officer on the company’s website.
Earlier this week Paul Creamer, a VFX, cinematic and gameplay animator who worked for Gunzilla for a year, posted a message on his LinkedIn page claiming that he hadn’t paid by the company for months and that he wasn’t the only one this had happened to.
“Gunzilla Games has not paid its employees for many months but still expects them to work,” he alleged. “I have personally not been paid since October 2025. Some have had their pay delayed even longer.”
Creamer’s post received a number of posts from other former Gunzilla employees and contractors who also claimed they hadn’t been paid for their work.
VGC contacted Gunzilla for comment on the accusations, but instead Gunzilla CEO Vlad Korolev has taken to X to address the situation, claiming that “haters” are trying to paint a narrative to make the studio look bad.
Korolev conceded that the company’s payments were made at a time that suited the company and not those being paid, then stated that “full-time official employees” were paid on time (many of the claims were made by contractors, not employees).
“Off The Grid today is not just part of web3 gaming – it defines it, whether some people like it or not,” he claimed. “Being named Web3 Game of the Year two years in a row. Today there is a new narrative from haters – that Gunzilla incorrectly laid off contractors or paid them with delays.
“Yes, we are optimizing costs – like every company in gaming, crypto, and tech is doing right now. We have been doing this for over a year. And yes, to not disrupt company operations, some payments may be scheduled in a way that works for the company’s cash flow – not always for everyone individually. That’s the reality of the world we live in.
“But to protect the interests of our players and our full-time official employees – whose salaries, over 6 years, have never been delayed by more than a week – we operate at a pace that ensures the company continues moving forward. And of course, we honor every obligation.”
Despite seemingly defending the company’s payment set-up, Korolev then added: “We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
“It’s also worth noting that one of the loudest voices – a contractor who finished working with us just a week ago – was repaid immediately,” he said. “Off the Grid has been live for over 1.5 years, and we’re still here – despite how much some people would love to see otherwise. Sorry, we won’t be giving you that privilege.”
Korolev also told anyone trying to spread “fear, uncertainty and doubt” about the game’s success that he would set up a live dashboard showing its player growth, but only to people who paid him 100,000 of its Gunz cryptocurrency (around $1,700).
“Every single day, 3,000 new players join Off the Grid,” he claimed. “And for those still spreading FUD – we’re happy to set up a live dashboard so you can see every new player joining in real time. Access will cost you 100k GUN – so you can finally put real weight behind your words.”
In his LinkedIn post claiming he hadn’t been paid by Gunzilla, Creamer alleged that Korolev promised them payments would be coming and that by not speaking out about it they were helping.
““I foolishly worked for 3 extra months (October, November and December) with assurances that delays in payment would be resolved,” Creamer wrote. “Upper management promised that these delays were temporary and growing pains tied to being a new company with a new game.
“In December the CEO himself (Vlad Korolev) had a call with my department where he promised us that invoices would be paid as soon as possible, that the company was profitable and that we were all doing the right thing by keeping quiet and continuing to work.
“He was not being truthful and now the company ignores our questions and removes our posts about what’s going on trying to silence us. Silence is what they’re hoping for, wishing that we’ll just quietly go away.”
He added: “I know I will never recover these lost wages, the damage is done. Gunzilla will get away with this without repercussion. This will happen again and again without end. Artists will continue to be taken advantage of, our passions will be continually exploited. After all, we’re lucky to do what we love aren’t we?
“The rest of the industry should know what has happened and what will continue to happen unless you organize and lock out these predatory leaders who seek only to enrich themselves and see you face down in the mud.”
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