Double Fine Thought Kiln And Keeper Could Be Hits

Published Sep 5, 2026, 9:22 AM EDT George is the Lead News Editor for TheGamer, and has been working in the industry since 2021 after graduating from the University of South Wales with a bachelor's degree in Journalism. He has also previously written for RPG Site, WhatCulture, and PlayStation Lifestyle. George is an expert on platformers, action games, and fighters, but tends to play as many releases as possible. This hands-on experience lets him dive into gaming communities and follow the latest trends. Some of the games George has extensively covered first-hand include Dead Rising, Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Assassin's Creed Shadows, and Ninja Gaiden 4. Double Fine founder Tim Schafer says that the team thought both Kiln and Keeper could be hits, and that the team doesn’t “actively” try to make games that lose money. When it was first reported that Xbox was looking to part ways with a number of its first-party studios, Double Fine was sadly one of the first to come to mind. Despite making some truly brilliant and original games, Psychonauts 2 is still the closest the team has ever come to a mainstream success, and even then, not really. Double Fine’s last two releases, Keeper and Kiln, were massively overlooked and didn’t pull in many players, which was especially worrying for the online-focused Kiln. Following a recent video that really rubbed Xbox players the wrong way, some have called Double Fine out for ‘purposefully’ making games that don’t sell, which Tim Schafer says isn’t the case at all. No, Double Fine Isn’t Trying To Lose Money No Studio In History Has Ever Had That Goal Earlier this week, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier had the chance to chat with Double Fine founder Tim Schafer about the studio’s future now that it’s “escaped the Xbox bloodbath”. At one point in the interview, Schafer is asked whether the team will make games that are more commercial now that they’re not funded by Microsoft. In response, Schafer points out that Double Fine “never actively tried to make a game we thought was going to lose money”. Schafer says that while some think Keeper was never going to be a hit, he thinks it’s the “kind of game that someone who doesn’t play games would love”, and that there’s actually a “mass market appeal” to it. In a video on his YouTube channel, Schreier says he “wouldn’t be shocked” if Double Fine is looking into more remasters, including modern versions of Psychonauts and Brutal Legend. I would quite simply die for both. It’s not just Keeper, either, as Schafer thinks Kiln still has a chance of being a hit, especially after a recent update that included a permanent price drop. As of the time of writing, Kiln currently has four active players on Steam, so that ship might have sadly already sailed. The point is, though, that Double Fine had faith in both games finding an audience. While I think the notion that any studio in the world is purposefully trying to lose money is laughable, Double Fine’s games have always been massively underappreciated by general audiences. Depressingly, we don't live in a world where Keeper, Kiln, Costume Quest, Stacking, and more get the love that they deserve, but I hope that changes with whatever Double Fine brings us next. Keeper Systems Released October 17, 2025 ESRB Everyone 10+ / Fantasy Violence, Animated Blood Developer(s) Double Fine Publisher(s) Xbox Game Studios Number of Players Single-player Steam Deck Compatibility Unknown Genre(s) Adventure, Puzzle, Fantasy