OtherSide Entertainment down to fewer than 10 staff after second round of layoffs in two weeks

OtherSide Entertainment has laid off another 18 employees, leaving fewer than 10 people at the studio. This follows a separate round of 17 layoffs just two weeks ago, triggered by the cancellation of an unannounced project codenamed Argos. A studio rep confirmed to Game Developer that the remaining skeleton crew is focused solely on updates for Thick as Thieves, with "currently no plans for the studio to work on any future games."

The rep framed the situation plainly: "OtherSide's DNA is built on immersive sim games that have lengthy development cycles. This, unfortunately, has been an increasingly challenging space to occupy in recent years." Despite what the studio described as an encouraging response to Thick as Thieves' launch, it concluded that continuing in its current form "is no longer a commercially viable path." The game launched at just $5/£5/€5 — a deliberately low price meant to build a player base and fund future content — but Steam player counts suggest that strategy didn't gain the traction OtherSide needed.

Thick as Thieves had a rocky road to release. Originally pitched and marketed as a PvPvE heist game, OtherSide pivoted to a singleplayer and two-player co-op experience shortly before launch. The game itself was reasonably well-received but came with friction points — a mission time limit and exit countdown mechanic that frustrated players — and offered only around four hours of content at launch. The immersive sim genre has always been a tough sell commercially; Nightdive CEO Stephen Kick noted earlier this year that the genre appeals to "a very small, niche group," which makes it hard to justify long development cycles to publishers and investors. OtherSide's previous game, Underworld Ascendant, also underperformed, leaving the studio with little margin for another stumble.

There's no official word yet on a full studio closure, but with 35 layoffs across two rounds in a fortnight and no future projects announced, the path forward looks extremely narrow. OtherSide was co-founded by veterans behind the original Thief and System Shock games, making its current state a painful moment for fans of the immersive sim genre.