by Humble Games has announced plans to restructure amid a tough economic environment for independent publishing. Several former employees have said they have been laid off. According to Nicole Carpenter of Polygon, the layoffs affect 36 workers. [Disclosure: IGN Entertainment and publishing label Humble Games operate under separate divisions of the same parent company, Ziff Davis. Charity bundle platform Humble Bundle remains a subsidiary of IGN Entertainment.]
The announcement comes as part of a statement from Humble Games, posted on Linkedin following several employees confirming their layoffs on social media. The statement emphasizes “the goal of ensuring stability and support for our developers and ongoing projects” while specifying that the restructuring has no impact on Humble Bundle.
During these challenging economic times for independent game publishing, Humble Games has made the difficult but necessary decision to restructure its operations. This decision was not made lightly; it required much deliberation and careful consideration, with the goal of ensuring stability and support for our developers and ongoing projects. Additionally, the restructuring of Humble Games’ operations will have no impact on Humble Bundle’s operations.
We are acutely aware of the profound impact this decision has had on our team members at Humble Games and we deeply sympathize with everyone affected. Our team’s contributions have been world-class and invaluable, supporting the launch of our games since we began publishing them in 2017. We are committed to navigating this transition with as much empathy and understanding as possible.
Supporting our development partners and assisting former team members remains our top priority. We are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible for everyone involved. Thank you for your support and compassion during this difficult time. We are deeply grateful.
Reached separately for comment, a Ziff Davis representative shared the statement posted above and said that the company is “not closing but is restructuring” and that “all past and ongoing projects and upcoming releases are unaffected and will continue to be supported and published by Humble Games.” The representative said they could not comment on how many employees are affected or remaining. Aftermath has since reported that all employees have been laid off and the work will be done by a third-party company.
Humble Games is an independent publishing label whose portfolio includes Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus, Signalis, and Stray Gods. Several developers who worked with Humble Games have expressed sympathy following the layoffs.
“My sincere best wishes to all former Humble Games staff, many of whom were instrumental in making [Unsighted] “What it was,” wrote Unsighted developer Fernanda Dias. “Thank you so much for working so hard on so many amazing games. This is incredibly heartbreaking news, holy shit.”
Humble Games is one of many independent publishers that have been forced to restructure due to the uncertainty surrounding the video game industry throughout 2024. IGN reported in May that Take-Two was quietly ending its Private Division label following the closure of OlliOlli World developer Roll7 and Kerbal Space Program 2 studio Intercept Games. Xbox, PlayStation, EA, and many other publishers have also suffered layoffs.
Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director and co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Got a tip? Send her a private message at @the_katbot.
