Schell Games, the studio best known for co‑creating the three‑dimensional version of Among Us and for the critically acclaimed I Expect You to Die series, has reportedly initiated a round of layoffs. The news surfaced after several employees posted about the cuts on LinkedIn, prompting coverage by Game Developer. The first public indication came from the studio’s principal engineering manager, who wrote that the company was undergoing its inaugural layoff event. He clarified that he himself remained on staff, emphasizing that the decision was not tied to personal performance.
"This isn’t a result of any individual’s actions. Our sector is currently bleeding heavily," he explained, underscoring the broader industry turmoil that appears to be driving the move.
Further confirmation arrived from marketing director Dwayne Waite Jr., who disclosed that the marketing department was among those affected. He listed four colleagues who were let go, and the senior public relations manager later added names from the art, design, and visual‑effects teams. When the various posts are tallied, roughly fourteen employees appear to have been impacted.
Schell Games’ LinkedIn profile lists its workforce size as ranging between 51 and 200 people, meaning the cuts represent a noticeable, though not massive, percentage of the total staff. One of the affected employees, the senior public relations manager, expressed a mixture of disappointment and pride. "I won’t pretend this isn’t a disappointing way to end this chapter, especially after almost six years," she wrote.
"But I’m walking away proud of what I accomplished during my time with the company, and I’m grateful for the people I got to build with." Her sentiment captures the bittersweet nature of layoffs in creative industries, where personal investment in projects often runs deep. The layoffs are particularly striking given the public stance of Schell Games’ founder and CEO, Jesse Schell, who has long positioned the studio as a company that avoids cutting jobs.
In a 2024 interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Schell articulated a philosophy that separates financial risk from employment risk. He argued that while the studio is willing to gamble cash on game development, it strives never to jeopardize its employees’ livelihoods. "At the heart of it all is choosing not to put jobs at risk," Schell said. "We’ll put cash at risk when we make a game, but we don’t put jobs at risk.
Even if our own IP brings in zero dollars, we still haven’t put any jobs at risk – we still have a path forward where we’ll be able to keep people on. So, in a lot of ways, it’s a choice." Despite those assurances, the current wave of reductions suggests that external pressures have become too great to ignore. The broader video‑game industry has been experiencing a period of contraction, with many mid‑size studios reporting revenue shortfalls, delayed releases, and shifting consumer preferences toward live‑service models and free‑to‑play titles. This macro‑economic environment has forced even well‑established developers to reassess staffing levels and operational budgets.
Industry analysts point out that the pandemic‑driven boom in gaming has largely subsided, leaving companies to grapple with the aftereffects of rapid expansion, inflated payrolls, and the need for sustainable cash flow. In addition, rising development costs, increased competition from both traditional publishers and emerging indie studios, and the volatility of platform revenue shares have created a perfect storm for financial strain. For Schell Games, the layoffs may also reflect strategic realignment.
The studio has a history of producing both original intellectual property and contract work for external partners. Balancing these two streams can be challenging, especially when contract pipelines dry up or when internal projects do not meet projected milestones. By trimming staff, the company may be aiming to preserve core competencies while reallocating resources toward projects with higher expected returns.
The human impact of such decisions cannot be understated. Employees who lose their positions often face immediate financial uncertainty, as well as the emotional toll of leaving a community they helped build.
Many in the gaming sector rely on specialized skill sets that are not easily transferable, making the job search process particularly arduous. In response, some laid‑off workers turn to freelance work, indie development, or even entirely new career paths. Schell Games has not issued an official statement beyond the employee posts, and GamesIndustry.biz has reached out for comment.
The silence may indicate that the leadership is still formulating a public narrative, or it could reflect a desire to avoid further scrutiny while the company stabilizes its operations. In summary, Schell Games, a studio recognized for its innovative contributions to interactive entertainment, is undergoing its first round of layoffs, affecting an estimated fourteen staff members across marketing, art, design, and visual effects.
The cuts come amid a broader industry downturn that has forced many developers to make difficult staffing decisions, despite prior commitments to protect employees from financial risk. As the situation unfolds, the affected employees express both disappointment and pride in their contributions, while the company’s future direction remains to be clarified by its leadership.