Indie Dev Officially Files Police Report After Gamescom Booth Raided

Cyberpunk 2077 Offers Solo Indie Dev New Hardware After Gamescom Theft Image via Adobe Stock. Published Aug 28, 2026, 11:40 AM EDT James Lucas is an Executive Editor at TheGamer who has worked in professional journalism since 2018. A Newcastle University graduate with a degree in Journalism, Media, and Culture, they have written hundreds of guides, news stories, and original reports, with bylines in IGN, NME, GaymingMag, and VG247, sourcing interviews with studio heads, legendary industry figures, prominent actors, and more. An expert on FPS games, Soulslikes, RPGs, and survival horror, James has intimate knowledge of a wide variety of titles, providing in-depth coverage and exclusive profiles. Some of the games they have extensively covered include: Half-Life 3, Counter-Strike, Elden Ring, and Fallout. They pride themselves on their consistently thorough research, leveraging nearly a decade of industry experience. You can reach them at James.t@thegamer.com Sign in to your TheGamer account Ryan Laley, the solo indie developer behind upcoming horror game Mimic, posted a video to X earlier today claiming that equipment was stolen from his Gamescom booth between Thursday night and Friday morning. "Effectively, my Gamescom's over early, as all our laptops have been stolen," Laley explained. "Our booth got raided last night. Not just mine — others as well. All our laptops have been stolen. I don't know—as an indie solo dev, this sh*t's expensive and hard to do all by yourself. And to have this happen is beyond frustrating. It's heartbreaking." Laley said the incident was reported to Gamescom's center management and security team, as well as the police. He doesn't expect the stolen equipment to be recovered, noting that the perpetrators left the chargers behind and took only the laptops. "I don't know what I'm gonna do now, as I can't really do my job," Laley added. The Industry Rallies To Support Laley In a follow-up comment, Laley explained that his booth was located in Gamescom's business area, which he said has 24/7 security and "limited access at night." It's therefore unclear how the perpetrators managed to enter the area and raid the booths. "Next time will have to take security into my own hands and extra secure things up or take them back to the hotel each night (which would be a massive pain)," Laley said. Losing expensive Alienware hardware at one of the world's biggest gaming conventions would be a nightmare for any developer, let alone a solo indie dev. Thankfully, CD Projekt Red has now stepped in to offer a helping hand. "We are very sorry this happened to you," the official Cyberpunk 2077 social account said. "We hope you know you're not on your own with this. And while it won't help right this second, we'll check the Arasaka hardware archives and see if we can send a few things your way. No choom should have to start from zero." The developers behind Yooka-Laylee also offered words of support, "Very sorry to hear that this happened to you, everyone at Playtonic Games sends their love." Meanwhile, content creators and YouTubers, including Gamertag VR, expressed that they'd be more than willing to help if Laley opened a GoFundMe page. Marketing consultant Joe Henson, better known as Indie Game Joe, likewise offered to "help fund replacement equipment and support however I can."