Double Fine, which regained independence from Xbox Game Studios in July, has unveiled its first post-Xbox game: Thank You Bus Driver. Studio founder Tim Schafer declared in a recent interview that his studio will keep making weird games like it and Keeper, as no one will be able to shut down Double Fine except for him.
In August, the San Francisco-based studio unveiled a new label called Double Fine Action Labs. Inspired by recent indie hits like Peak, Double Fine Action Labs will focus on smaller-scale titles that can be quickly announced and released for players. Thank You Bus Driver will be the first game released under that label, and it fits the bill perfectly.
Thank You Bus Driver is a quirky take on a transportation simulator game where players have to chaotically pick up and drive passengers while also paying attention to what they’re doing and slapping them if they break a rule. It’s something I can’t imagine Xbox Game Studios publishing anymore, making it a perfect declaration of the kinds of games neo-Double Fine is interested in developing.
What else can we expect from Double Fine in the future?
Beyond Thank You Bus Driver’s announcement, it has been a big week for Double Fine. Its documentary and game jam Kickstarter campaign for Amnesia Fortnight 2026: Indie Reboot has already surpassed its funding goal. Right now, backers are voting on which pitches Double Fine will work on during the game jam, with one of them becoming an officially released game. Some Double Fine developers are also celebrating, selling merch, and showing off Thank You Bus Driver at PAX West this weekend, too.
A port of Keeper was also shadow-dropped onto PS5 earlier this week during a State of Play, marking Double Fine’s first post-Xbox launch. In a Bloomberg interview about all of this, Tim Schafer also made some bold statements about the studio’s future, proclaiming that he has no plans to shut down the studio and will never let anyone but himself control that decision.
“No one puts Double Fine out of business except for me. [Xbox CEO] Asha’s not going to shoot my dog. I’m going to shoot it. But I’m not going to shoot it because it’s going to do great. A lot of people want to walk the dog.”
While this new era for Double Fine is already beginning, it’s already shaping up to be a very entertaining one. Thank You Bus Driver does not have a release date right now and is only slated to launch on Windows PC.
