It's no secret that Heart Machine has had a rough time of it of late, with the indie studio behind the massively popular Hyper Light Drifter laying off a significant number of its staff ahead of the release of Possessor(s) and effectively cancelling the development of Hyper Light Breaker less than a year after the game launched on Steam. Now, it seems as though Heart Machine is on the brink, with a recent statement from the studio's CEO, Alx Preston, confirming the news on LinkedIn.

In the statement, the CEO and founder of Heart Machine confirms that it has had to lay off "nearly everyone" at the studio, after a publisher it was working with on an upcoming game "decided to no longer move forward with it," effectively leaving the studio without funding and without any immediate prospects for funding. He explains that he is "not sure yet" what is next for Heart Machine or how the studio will survive, effectively suggesting that Heart Machine is expected to shut down in the coming weeks or months unless something changes regarding its financials. The full statement from Preston follows.

Heart Machine, the studio behind Hyper Light Drifter, its spiritual successor, Solar Ash, and its actual successor, Hyper Light Breaker, recently implemented a round of layoffs following the launch of Hyper Light Breaker, and it appears this round of layoffs—the second in recent memory—has not been taken lightly by the remaining developers at the studio. According to a recent report by Game Developer, employees at Heart Machine have officially joined the CWA (Communication Workers of America) in a voluntary bargaining agreement in the name of job security and workers' rights. The union members are reportedly currently evaluating their priorities and what they plan to bargain for, but the developers at the studio say that the justification for joining the union is to be able to protect the craft and the creative collaboration that enables game designers and video game workers to create "something they'd want to play themselves." According to an announcement by The CWA, a majority of workers at Heart Machine signed the unionization agreement, meaning contracts at the studio will now be drawn up with CWA representation.

Unionization has been something of a trend in recent years in the video game industry, with video game voice actors joining the protracted
SAG-Aftra strike in 2024 and 2025 seeking protections against the exact sorts of layoffs that previously affected Heart Machine developers, in addition to protections against the AI systems currently taking over the gaming industry. 2025 also saw the launch of the United Video Game Workers' Union, which seeks similar protections against practices like layoffs in the name of profit. A recent video game industry survey also indicated that as many as 82% of video game workers support unionization, with younger workers responding even more positively. The news of Heart Machine joining the CWA also follows the announcement that EA is cutting an unspecified number of jobs at its Battlefield 6 studios.

Heart Machine revealed earlier this month that it was laying off a significant number of staff and "winding down" the development of its most recent early access game, Hyper Light Breaker. This was shortly after the studio announced its upcoming stylized side-scroller action horror game, Possessor(s). Now, however, it seems as though a number of developers and staff who worked on Possessor(s) are also getting the boot, less than two weeks before the game's November 11 launch. The layoffs weren't announced by the studio itself, but rather in a series of posts on Bluesky by the affected workers. One post read: "My time at Heart Machine has sadly come to a rather abrupt end," suggesting an immediate end to their six-year stint at the studio. This is the third round of layoffs at Heart Machine in the last year, with the first coming in November 2024, shortly ahead of the launch of Hyper Light Breaker.

At the time of writing, it's unclear just how many workers were laid off, but it appears as though the layoffs will affect multiple roles in different departments. One worker who worked on PR and community and management, commented in a video that "by the time Possessor(s) comes out on November 11, I don't know that anyone who worked on it will even be at the company anymore." She also mentions that the layoffs would be effective immediately, echoing the sentiments of other posts and suggesting that some staff members have been retained until the game launches. This was confirmed by a producer who was laid off, who says that her time a Heart Machine "will come to an end after Possessor(s) ships," adding that she is too busy "literally shipping the game to start actively looking for work."

Hyper Light Breaker received some significant criticism immediately after launch, largely for clunky combat, insubstantial progression, and a lack of world-building. Some community feedback is to be expected, since Hyper Light Breaker is still in Steam Early Access, but the community backlash was unexpected, given the success that the game's predecessor, Hyper Light Drifter, garnered. The first major content update aimed at addressing much of the criticism has just dropped on Steam, and many of the changes seem to be welcome by the community.

Some of the biggest changes to Hyper Light Breaker introduced in the Buried Below update include changes to character progression, weapon synergies, and the overall gameplay loop itself. Heart Machine also introduced a new playable character, Rondo, two new melee weapons, a new mini boss—a Crown called Maw—with its own player perks, and new areas for players to explore. Heart Machine also says it has streamlined the game's onboarding process, and that the changes to the game should make the game easier to get into for new players but more difficult to master. In terms of the gameplay loop, the new update reduces player lives from four per run to one per run, making things much less forgiving, however, players will also now always spawn in one of two locations, making the start of a new run more predictable. There are also a number of improvements to the enemy AI that should make encounters and battles somewhat more challenging and interesting. Players are also locked to a single character and companion for the duration of each run, which is a substantial change from the previous system which allowed players to switch characters and Sycoms mid-run. There are a number of other balance patches and new additions, which you can read about in the full patch notes below. Overall, judging from the comments in the Steam Community discussion under the update patch notes, players seem to be tentatively excited about the majority of the changes to the gameplay loop, although some concerns remain.

Hyper Light Breaker, a new 3D indie platformer we reported on previously has finally launched to early access on Steam, and despite the surprising success of its predecessors, Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash, Hyper Light Breaker isn't looking like the break-out indie hit of the month. While the game has garnered a solid 5,230 peak concurrent players just five hours after launch, the Steam reviews are hardly anything to write home about so far.

According to SteamDB, Hyper Light Breaker has a review rating of just 35.5%, with 31.4% of the reviews giving the game a positive rating, while 68.6% of Steam reviewers gave it a negative score. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, it looks like most of the issues with Hyper Light Breaker stem from the game's early access status. Early reviews on Steam report that the game's core mechanics and gameplay loop are satisfying, but that the game, overall, seems like it needs more time in the oven. Some of the more serious complaints when it comes to Hyper Light Breaker relate to the game's combat being somewhat difficult to grasp, progression feeling unsubstantial, initial difficulty being too high, and a steep learning curve. Others pointed out that there appears to be a lot of missing content. That said, as some reviewers have pointed out, the game is in early access. If we look at the likes of Windblown—or No Man's Sky for an example on a longer timeframe—it's easy to see the value in an early access period and community feedback. If Heart Machine, the developer behind Hyper Light Breaker, uses its community feedback properly and implements fixes to issues as they arise, it seems like it could be a game enjoyed by many indie gamers.

Hyper Light Breaker, the sequel to the massively popular indie hit, Hyper Light Drifter, is set to release on Steam on January 15, 2025. The only catch is that the game will release into early access, meaning it will likely change significantly during its first year on the market. At launch, Hyper Light Breaker will cost $29.99.

While Hyper Light Breaker shares a name with and hits a lot of the same aesthetic notes as Hyper Light Drifter, it isn't exactly a sequel in the classical sense. Hyper Light Breaker is set "decades before" the events of Hyper Light Drifter, and the aesthetic looks like an upgraded version of the hyper stylized 3D graphics we saw from Heart Machine in Solar Ash, as opposed to the top-down 2D pixel art of Hyper Light Drifter. Unlike Solar Ash, though, the core gameplay loop will rely on rogue-lite mechanics and hack and slash combat, making it a unique entry in the Hyper Light universe. Additionally, Hyper Light Breaker will be a co-op game, with support for up to three players in a squad.