Psychonauts and Brutal Legend developer Double Fine Productions has confirmed it has regained the IP and publishing rights for all of its video games launched below Microsoft following its break up from Xbox.
CEO Tim Schafer cleared the air concerning the developer’s future within the business throughout a dialog with Kinda Funny Games at the moment. Amid questions from followers hoping to help Double Fine because it enters a brand new chapter, he clarified that purchasing any of its earlier releases will assist it proceed to flex the wildly inventive muscle mass it is recognized for.
“I noticed a query, there, ‘Do you guys make the cash on video games?’ The switch of the IP got here again to us, and we get the publishing rights again to all our video games,” Schafer mentioned.
The one caveat to all of that is that it might nonetheless say Microsoft owns “a few of them,” however that may change in time. He went on, explaining, “it simply takes some time for it to all course of.” The headline, although, is that “when individuals purchase our video games, it helps the studio.”
“In case you’re curious, shopping for any of our video games helps help the studio,” he repeated. “We are able to flip that cash into income that helps us prolong that runway.”
That “runway” is one thing Schafer introduced up just a few occasions throughout his dialog on the each day gaming present. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma promised that Double Fine, in addition to South of Midnight developer Compulsion Games, would retain their IP, catalog, and a “runway for his or her subsequent video games” once they have been listed as a part of a grand restructuring plan early final month. The transfer, which additionally laid the groundwork for 3,200 layoffs throughout Xbox groups, gave the Psychonauts studio an out amid troubles at Microsoft’s gaming division however left its long-term future unsure.
To assist prolong that runway at the moment, Schafer and the remainder of Double Fine pulled again the curtain on its Amnesia Fortnight 2026, Indie Reboot Kickstarter page. The crowdfunding marketing campaign will lead to a recreation jam that is set to happen beginning August 31 and will run “by means of most of September.”
In typical Double Fine vogue, it is bought its personal twist, too, with the web page promising to let backers select which concepts make it to the prototyping stage, with one finally turning into a “actual (small) recreation.” Moreover, 2 Participant Productions will likely be filming each step of the way in which, with the purpose being to create a documentary.
Schafer mentioned throughout at the moment’s interview that there “are different tasks we’re engaged on,” although what these are stays to be seen. With entry to tales from video games like Keeper, Psychonauts 2, and Kiln again in its management, that runway is already wanting just a little bit longer.
Talking of Kiln, its 2026 pottery-based multiplayer recreation, Schafer mentioned the studio continues to be firing updates behind the scenes. “New maps and modes” appear to be simply the tip of the iceberg, with Schafer additionally promising to drop the value “as a result of we’re loopy.”
Double Fine’s transition again into an unbiased studio was nearly instantly adopted by layoffs affecting 25% of its group. For now, what form its subsequent recreation will take is unclear. Within the meantime, you possibly can examine why IGN thinks their work is price testing with our 9/10 Keeper assessment and our 8/10 Psychonauts 2 assessment.
Michael Cripe is a contract author with IGN. He is finest recognized for his work at websites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. You should definitely give him a observe on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).