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6h ago

Double Fine Lays Off 23 After Regaining Independence From Xbox

The cuts highlight the financial strain on studios forced out by Xbox’s profit-focused reset and the limits of surviving without corporate backing.

Tim Schafer, founder and president of Double Fine Productions, speaks during the Microsoft Corp. Xbox event ahead of the E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, California, U.S., on Sunday, June 9, 2019. Microsoft introduced its new Xbox console that will be four times more powerful than the current generation Xbox One X, thanks to an AMD processor that allows for 120 frames per second. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Image: Double Fine Productions
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Overview

  • Double Fine announced Tuesday that it had let go of 23 employees, a reduction that represents roughly a quarter of the studio’s reported ~90-person workforce before the cuts.
  • Founder Tim Schafer said the layoffs were necessary to “ensure the survival” of the studio as it scales to a size it can sustain and that the company will support affected staff during their transition.
  • Xbox confirmed Double Fine fully returned to independent management earlier this week and that the studio retained its intellectual property, game catalog, and runway for future projects.
  • The layoffs follow Xbox’s broader restructuring that will eliminate about 3,200 jobs and saw several first-party teams spun off or sold, with other studio outcomes such as Arkane Lyon still unresolved.
  • The move underscores wider industry risks for mid-sized developers leaving corporate support, increases pressure on remaining staff to secure revenue or partners, and raises concerns about lost experience and longer-term creative capacity.