Layoffs reported at Hello Neighbor publisher TinyBuild

UPDATE 06/12/23: Former employees of TinyBuild's internal developer Hakjak Studios say it has been shut down.

Writing on X (née Twitter), narrative director Colin McInerney confirmed the studio had been shut down by TinyBuild. On Bluesky, producer Amanda Farough said Hakjak was "unceremoniously shuttered" and all employees lost their jobs.

Hakjak was formed in 2020 with solo developer Jed "HakJak" Steen (Guts and Glory) and was working on Pigeon Simulator, which was expected to release into early access on Steam in 2024.

Eurogamer has contacted TinyBuild for comment.

ORIGINAL STORY 05/12/23: Layoffs at publisher TinyBuild have been reported, following lower than expected performance during the financial year so far.

TinyBuild publishes indie titles and is known for the Hello Neighbor series, Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator, and Tinykin.

Yesterday, the Telegram channel Gamedev we deserve claimed there had been layoffs at TinyBuild's three studios within Serbia, as reported by App2Top (Russian) and translated by Game World Observer. The number of employees affected is said to be between 10 and 30 percent for each studio.

Gamedev we deserve alleged that TinyBuild did not warn people in advance, and instead pulled people into a one-on-one meeting to deliver the news they had been let go. The report also claimed working conditions for employees in the Serbian studios have been deteriorating, and said TinyBuild had stopped paying for Serbian language courses for those who need them.

In a trading update from TinyBuild today, CEO Alex Nichiporchik alluded to layoffs within the company. "It's physically painful to part ways with colleagues after all the good work they put into the company," he wrote in his concluding message. Nichiporchik blamed a "weak demand for video games and the sudden reversal of market dynamics" for the company's low revenue and cash position (total amount of cash on hand including funds, assets etc.). "The only reason to justify this decision is that [TinyBuild] has entered a pivotal stage," Nichiporchik continued, "and I am committed to do everything I can to ensure we get through this tough period."

TinyBuild is yet to confirm whether it has laid off any employees and it's unclear exactly how many have been affected. Eurogamer has contacted TinyBuild for comment.

Stories of layoffs continue to dominate the industry. Today alone both EA and Embracer confirmed layoffs at F1 developer Codemaster and Insurgency developer New World Interactive respectively.