Humble Games announced a restructuring on July 23, 2024. The company said it would keep supporting developers and ongoing projects, and that Humble Bundle would not be affected. Employee accounts reported at the same time said the publisher’s entire staff of 36 had been let go. GamesBeat later reported, based on internal materials it reviewed and on former employees, that Ziff Davis had tried twice to sell Humble Games without finding a viable buyer. These are different kinds of claims, and they carry different levels of evidence. This article separates them.
Did Humble Games shut down?
The company did not announce a shutdown. Its public statement described a restructuring of operations at Humble Games, a publishing label that works with independent developers. Reporting from PC Gamer and GamesBeat, both dated July 23, 2024, used the word “restructuring” for the company’s own framing and described employee accounts that went further.
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PC Gamer’s headline states the tension directly: “Humble Games says it’s ‘restructuring,’ employees say its entire staff has been laid off.” Neither outlet, in the material reviewed for this article, reported a formal legal dissolution, a corporate filing, or a statement that the label had closed its doors. Readers should treat “shut down” as an employee-side characterization that the company’s own words do not confirm.
Were all Humble Games employees laid off?
Employee accounts relayed by GamesBeat and PC Gamer said the full staff of 36 was let go. The company’s statement did not specify how many people were affected. The 36 figure therefore comes from employees and the outlets that reported their accounts, not from a number the company published.
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- Story Campaign: Journey across six vivid islands and embark on the adventure of becoming a Temtem tamer while fighting against the evil Clan Belsoto
- Online World: The days of traveling solo are over; in Temtem the world is a massively multiplayer one. Tamers from around the world can join and you will be able to see them around you, living the adventure with you and fighting to become the best Temtem tamer
- Co-Op Adventure: You will be able to join forces with a friend any time and work together towards your next goal. Catch new Temtem, complete a Route, or face off against a Temtem Leader; all while fighting alongside your friend in dual battles!
- Housing: Buy your own house at Atoll Row and decorate it your way. Buy new furniture, colour your walls and you'll be ready to invite your friends over!
- Customize: Customize your character to stand out from the crowd and get new cosmetics while you battle other tamers. Pick a silly hat, a comfy sweatshirt, some pants and you're ready to go! Or maybe you prefer to wear a full-on cosplay of your favorite Temtem Comitive: Start by choosing 8 Temtem and the pick and ban phase will begin. Take turns with your rival to pick your Temtem and ban theirs.
Because the company never gave a headcount, the statement and the employee accounts cannot be checked against each other on this point. What both sides agree on is that the restructuring affected staff, and the company acknowledged a serious impact on team members.
What Humble Games said publicly
The company’s July 23, 2024 statement, as reproduced by GamesBeat, opened with this sentence: “In these challenging economic times for indie game publishing, Humble Games has made the difficult but necessary decision to restructure our operations.” The statement is attributed to Humble Games as an organization. No individual spokesperson is named in the coverage reviewed.
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- 5 vastly different worlds to explore!
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The same statement said developers and ongoing projects would continue to be supported, and that the restructuring would have no effect on Humble Bundle. It also said: “Additionally, the restructuring of operations at Humble Games will have no impact on operations at Humble Bundle.”
The statement does not say that every contracted release would be completed on a fixed schedule. Its language is about continued support, not a specific delivery commitment.
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- Explore and uncover the secrets of Dodgeball Academia’s vast, diverse, and full of life campus.
- Full-blown RPG story mode; complete with episodes, main quests, side quests, and minigames.
- Unlock and upgrade characters through an RPG style character and party progression.
- Engage in action-packed dodgeball matches featuring a unique fighting game style.
- Duke it out with a friend locally in a competitive local versus mode.
Humble Games and Humble Bundle are separate operations
Humble Games is the publishing label. Humble Bundle is the storefront and bundle business. The company said the storefront would not be affected, and PC Gamer also described the two as separate. Most of the confusion in coverage of this story comes from treating the publisher’s layoffs as if they touched the storefront. The statement does not support that reading.
What employees and reporting added
Two further claims appear in GamesBeat’s reporting, which was first published July 23, 2024 and updated June 18, 2025. Both rest on internal materials the outlet reviewed and on former employees, not on a public announcement.
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Two reported attempts to sell
GamesBeat reported that Ziff Davis, the parent company, tried to sell Humble Games twice, including one attempt in the year before the July 2024 restructuring. According to the report, neither attempt drew significant interest or produced a viable sale. The report does not name any prospective buyers.
Ziff Davis has not been reported as announcing or confirming a sale process. Treat the attempts as GamesBeat’s reporting, not as a publicly documented sale effort.
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- Story Campaign: Journey across six vivid islands and embark on the adventure of becoming a Temtem tamer while fighting against the evil Clan Belsoto.
- Online World: The days of traveling solo are over; in Temtem the world is a massively multiplayer one. Tamers from around the world can join and you will be able to see them around you, living the adventure with you and fighting to become the best Temtem tamer.
- Co-Op Adventure: You will be able to join forces with a friend any time and work together towards your next goal. Catch new Temtem, complete a Route, or face off against a Temtem Leader; all while fighting alongside your friend in dual battles!
- Housing: Buy your own house at Atoll Row and decorate it your way. Buy new furniture, color your walls and you’ll be ready to invite your friends over!
- Customize: Customize your character to stand out from the crowd and get new cosmetics while you battle other tamers. Pick a silly hat, a comfy sweatshirt, some pants and you’re ready to go! Or maybe you prefer to wear a full-on cosplay of your favorite Temtem?
A third-party transition
GamesBeat also reported that Ziff Davis hired The Powell Group to manage the upcoming release slate and the back catalog. The same report attributed to a former employee the claim that Humble Games had no publishing agreements beyond 2025. Both points are reported information. Neither has been confirmed in a public statement from the company or from Ziff Davis in the material reviewed.
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| Date | Event | Source and status |
|---|---|---|
| November 2023 | An earlier attempt to restructure part of the business | Reported by GamesBeat, based on its reporting and linked coverage |
| 2023–2024 (one attempt in the year before July 2024) | First of two reported attempts to sell Humble Games | Reported by GamesBeat from internal materials and former employees; no buyer named; not confirmed publicly by Ziff Davis |
| July 17, 2024 | Release of Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus, five days before the staffing cuts | Date reported by GamesBeat |
| July 23, 2024 | Humble Games issues restructuring statement; employee accounts say 36 staff were let go | Company statement reproduced by GamesBeat; headcount from employee accounts relayed by GamesBeat and PC Gamer |
| June 18, 2025 | GamesBeat updates its report with sale-attempt and Powell Group details | GamesBeat update |
GamesBeat also described Humble Games as having published nearly 50 indie games. That is the outlet’s catalog count, not an audited figure from the company.
How to read the conflicting accounts
Two questions untangle most of the apparent contradictions: who is speaking, and what is being described. The company’s statement speaks to how it intends to operate. Employee accounts speak to staffing. Reported internal materials speak to the sale attempts and the later operational arrangement.
| Claim | Who is speaking | What it describes | Status in the coverage reviewed |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Restructuring” of Humble Games | Humble Games (company statement) | Corporate operating posture | Stated publicly on July 23, 2024 |
| Continued support for developers and ongoing projects | Humble Games (company statement) | Publishing commitments going forward | Stated publicly; no delivery schedule given |
| No impact on Humble Bundle | Humble Games (company statement) | Storefront operations | Stated publicly; PC Gamer describes the two as separate |
| Entire staff of 36 let go | Employees, as relayed by GamesBeat and PC Gamer | Staffing | Employee account; the company did not state a number |
| Two failed sale attempts | GamesBeat, from internal materials and former employees | Ownership and sale process | Reported; not confirmed publicly by Ziff Davis |
| Powell Group manages slate and back catalog | GamesBeat, from internal materials and former employees | Post-restructuring operations | Reported; not confirmed publicly |
| No publishing agreements beyond 2025 | A former employee, as reported by GamesBeat | Contract status | Single-source claim attributed to a former employee |
What is not established
- A formal corporate closure or dissolution of Humble Games. None was reported in the sources reviewed.
- The identity of any prospective buyer in the reported sale attempts.
- A public confirmation from Ziff Davis of either sale attempt or of the Powell Group arrangement.
- Whether every contracted release was completed. The company’s statement promised continued support, not a completion timeline.
- Any later public statement from Humble Games about its staffing or release plans. The coverage reviewed here is dated July 2024 and June 2025, so developments after those dates are outside this article’s evidence.
Readers who need the current status of Humble Games’ catalog or contracts should check the company’s own channels and any newer reporting, since the sources used for this article do not cover later events.
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