Double Fine Productions is an independent studio again after leaving the Xbox umbrella in July 2026, funding a smaller headcount and putting out new work under its own label, Double Fine Action Labs.
Double Fine Productions spent 2026 moving from one structure to another. The studio announced its independence from Microsoft on July 6, 2026, part of an Xbox reset that also saw Compulsion Games, Ninja Theory and Undead Labs leave the umbrella. Double Fine kept ownership of its works and, according to reporting confirmed with an Xbox spokesperson, retained funding for its next title. Three weeks later it laid off 23 people, about a quarter of a workforce that a Bloomberg reporter put at roughly 90 before the cuts. The studio called the decision difficult and necessary to its survival, and said independence requires becoming a sustainable size.
Product decisions followed the ownership change. On September 3, Double Fine cut the price of its online pottery battle game Kiln from about 2,800 yen to about 1,100 yen, calling the lower figure an indie price now that revenue goes directly to the studio, and launched a Bisque Update. Two days later it announced Thank You Bus Driver, a PC driving game about a bus driver enforcing daily changing passenger rules, where violators are slapped or thrown out. The game is the first release from Double Fine Action Labs, the label the studio started after going independent.
The studio also marked a death in its own catalog. On August 27 it made the itch.io version of Brütal Legend free for 666 minutes as a tribute to Tim Curry, who voiced the antagonist Emperor Doviculus and died on August 25.
Before all of this, at BitSummit PUNCH in Kyoto in May, project lead Derek Brand and creative lead Lee Petty described how Kiln grew out of pottery lessons and how Keeper, a wordless single-player adventure, began during the pandemic. Both said the studio had gained resources under Xbox without losing creative freedom, an account that preceded the independence announcement by about a month.
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Double Fine Productions announced Thank You Bus Driver on September 5. The PC driving game casts the player as a bus driver who enforces daily changing passenger rules, from no phone calls to no farting. Violators are slapped or thrown out. The studio's new label Double Fine Action Labs releases it as its first work.
Double Fine Productions cut the price of its online pottery battle game Kiln from about 2,800 yen to about 1,100 yen on September 3. The studio said the reduction reflects an 'indie price' now that it is independent and revenue goes directly to it. A new 'Bisque Update' also launched.
Double Fine Productions announced on August 27 that the itch.io version of Brütal Legend is free for a limited time of 666 minutes, a tribute to Tim Curry, who died on August 25. Curry voiced Emperor Doviculus, the game's antagonist. The free window runs until around 7:00 p.m. Japan time the same day.
Double Fine Productions announced on July 29 that it has laid off 23 staff members, roughly one-quarter of its workforce. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier said the studio had about 90 employees before the cuts. The San Francisco-based studio, founded by Tim Schafer in 2000, described the decision as difficult and said it was necessary to ensure the studio's survival after regaining its independence from Microsoft. Double Fine became part of Xbox in 2019, but on July 6, 2026, it announced its independence amid a large-scale restructuring of the Xbox division. The studio regained ownership of its works and retained funding for its next title, according to Kotaku's confirmation with an Xbox spokesperson. The layoffs came about three weeks after that independence announcement. The studio said it was not a light decision for a small, tightly-knit team, but independence also entails becoming a sustainable size. It expressed support for affected staff, calling them important people who influenced the studio's games and culture. Double Fine is known for the Psychonauts series and recently released the multiplayer pottery game Kiln in April 2026.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma announced a "reset" of the business, with 3,200 layoffs planned through the 2027 fiscal year, starting with 1,600 immediate cuts. Four studios-Compulsion Games, Double Fine Productions, Ninja Theory, and Undead Labs-will leave the Xbox umbrella. Compulsion and Double Fine will become independent with their IPs; Ninja Theory and Undead Labs will go to new owners. Arkane France is in consultation. The company aims to reduce management layers and appoint a COO.
At BitSummit PUNCH, held May 22-24, 2026 at Miyako Messe in Kyoto, Double Fine Productions gave a rare interview in Japan. Project lead Derek Brand discussed the studio's upcoming multiplayer title 'Kiln', which departs from their usual story-driven single-player games. Brand explained that 'Kiln' began from the concept of letting players create their own characters and fight with them, with pottery and ceramics chosen as the medium after the team found a photo of pots and drew faces on them. The team took pottery lessons for several months during pre-production. Creative lead Lee Petty spoke about 'Keeper', a wordless single-player adventure released last year about a lighthouse that grows legs and walks. Petty said the idea came from a walk during the pandemic, thinking about what becomes meaningless after humanity disappears. Both developers noted that since joining Xbox in 2019, the studio has gained resources without restrictions on their creative freedom. They expressed gratitude to Japanese fans and said development on 'Kiln' continues.