Schell Games, the veteran VR studio behind spy-themed puzzle series I Expect You to Die and Among Us 3D, confirmed it has laid off 40% of staff in effort to stay afloat.
“We’re very sad to say that due to this challenging time in the game industry, Schell Games has found it necessary to lay off a significant number of employees in order to ensure a sustainable future for our studio,” the studio announced in a LinkedIn post on Saturday. “While this will enable us to stay stable moving forward, it is incredibly painful as we are losing some fantastic talent.”
CEO Jesse Schell later confirmed the studio has laid off “about 40% of the studio.” While the exact number of employees affected is still unknown, this follows a layoff round in August—the studio’s first in its 20+ years in existence—which saw a 10 percent reduction of staff.
Although the studio hasn’t specified the exact number of employees affected, this follows a layoff round in August—the studio’s first in its 20+ years in existence—which saw a 10 percent reduction of staff.
At the time, Schell said that about 125 staff remained, suggesting 50 employees were involved in the most recent round, leaving the studio at 75.
Multiple positions at the studio have been affected, including Unity & Unreal Engine Engineers, Game Artists, Game Designers, Sound Designers, Producers, Game Marketers, IT Support Specialists, Educational Game Researchers, Quality Assurance Specialists, and Product Managers.
Schell Games is best known addition for the I Expect You to Die trilogy and Among Us 3D (previously Among Us VR before adding flatscreen support). The studio was also behind rogue-like hack-and-slash Until You Fall, horror-themed VR puzzle game Silent Slayer: Vault of the Vampire, and Project Freefall, a free-to-play party game featuring both VR and flatscreen support.
Recently, the studio announced it was releasing Dragon Grove, a mixed reality gardening sim for Quest 3/3S and Meta VR Glasses, slated to arrive in Spring 2027.
