Double Fine, the Xbox first-party developer known for Psychonauts, is establishing a labor union. According to Aftermath, the studio submitted a formal petition to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on May 7. This move seeks to unionize all 42 part-time and full-time staff members alongside the Communications Workers of America (CWA).
The CWA informed the outlet that the studio’s organizing effort aims to “preserve and extend [its] commitments to creative excellence, diversity and inclusion, and worker quality of life.” Alongside the NLRB election petition, the employees are requesting voluntary recognition from Microsoft. The labor union expressed gratitude for Microsoft’s neutral stance, noting the company’s agreement to refrain from interfering with workers’ rights to organize.
Double Fine’s workforce joins a growing list of Microsoft-owned developer groups that have recently unionized. In 2024, over 500 World of Warcraft workers at Blizzard joined the CWA, followed nearly a year later by the Overwatch team, which formed a comprehensive union with almost 200 developers. Additionally, quality assurance staff at ZeniMax Studios, renowned for The Elder Scrolls Online, finalized their union pact with Microsoft last year. Furthermore, in August 2025, over 450 Diablo developers at Blizzard also voted to unionize with the CWA.
Double Fine joined Microsoft in 2019, nearly two decades after releasing Psychonauts, a title centered on a young boy with psychic powers. Under the Xbox Game Studios banner, the studio has published Psychonauts 2, Keeper, an adventure game starring a sentient lighthouse, and the multiplayer pottery game Kiln.