Heart Machine has laid off the majority of its staff after a publishing deal collapsed, leaving the Hyper Light Drifter developer's future in doubt, studio head Alx Preston confirmed in a LinkedIn post.

Preston wrote: "Without this key income, any other immediate prospects or other funds, nearly everyone at the studio had to be laid off. It's devastating."

The studio has not named the publishing partner or disclosed the value of the agreement. Without replacement financing, the cuts effectively leave Heart Machine without the staff required to continue operations at scale.

What triggered the latest layoffs?

Preston framed the deal's collapse as the proximate cause. The company had been relying on the agreement for near-term operating costs; when the partner pulled out, Heart Machine had no immediate income to replace it. The studio has committed to placement support for departing staff.

"Everyone will be provided with as much support as possible, including assisting with placement," Preston wrote. "If you know of any roles for extraordinarily talented, kind people, please reach out and we will coordinate."

How did the studio get here?

The latest cuts extend a contraction that now stretches back nearly three years. An unspecified number of staff were let go in November 2024 as Hyper Light Breaker approached its Steam early access launch, which arrived in January 2025.

Two further rounds followed earlier in October 2025, with the second landing roughly 12 days before Heart Machine shipped Possessor(s), the studio's sci-fi action-RPG spin-off published by Devolver Digital.

Heart Machine did not publicly announce the October waves, though several affected employees confirmed the redundancies on social media. "By the time Possessor(s) comes out, I don't know if anyone who worked on the game will even be at the company anymore," one told reporters at the time.

What does this mean for the games?

Hyper Light Breaker remains in early access on Steam. Heart Machine has not clarified whether the development team in place at launch will continue, nor has it issued a public update on the roadmap or live-service cadence since the layoffs.

Possessor(s) shipped on schedule, but ongoing support is now an open question for a studio without a confirmed operational team.

What about the union?

Earlier in 2025, 13 Heart Machine employees formed a union and won voluntary recognition from management — a rare concession for a U.S. studio of its size. Heart Machine has not addressed how the cuts will affect the bargaining unit, any active negotiations, or the union's status under the new headcount.

What's next for Heart Machine?

• Whether the studio secures bridge funding, a new publishing partner, or an acquirer to keep operations alive
• The fate of Hyper Light Breaker's early access roadmap and any live-service commitments to existing players
• Whether voluntary union recognition survives the headcount reduction, and what it means for any contract in progress

Preston closed his post without committing to a specific path forward: "Navigating an increasingly challenging industry has been extremely difficult, and I'm not sure yet what's next for Heart Machine to survive. However, we'll keep pushing to build a path while we are still here."