Indie Studio Funomena Reportedly Closing Down After Toxic Workplace Allegations
Sad news today as there are reports that suggest that indie studio Funomena - the developer behind Wattam and Luna - is set to close its doors at the end of the month following serious abuse allegations directed toward co-founder Robin Hunicke. It’s claimed that the announcement has caught current employees by surprise, leaving them with little time to find other work with a final paycheck coming this Friday. All of Funomena's contractors were also apparently let go as early as last Wednesday.
This report comes from People Make Games founder Chris Bratt who recently published a video detailing stories of abuse and toxic workplace environments at three highly-prestigious indie developers. Funomena was one of these developers, with co-founder Robin Hunicke being accused of emotional abuse. Hunicke allegedly used the private information of employees to humiliate them in professional environments, and employees couldn’t complain due to no HR department.
Related: Report: How Women Navigate Crunch, Abuse, And Lack Of Opportunities In The Gaming Industry
Hunicke later apologized for her behavior, claiming that she would take time to “talk to people” and try to “figure out next steps,” although potentially sweeping the rug out from underneath employees doesn’t seem to be the smartest way to go about making amends. All of this is unconfirmed with no official announcement from Hunicke or Funomena, although it’s worth noting that these reports come from people close to or who had previously been in contact with Funomena employees.
Now that Funomena is set to close down, all the indie developers mentioned in Bratt’s initial video have been torn apart or significantly impacted by their founders. Florence developer Mountains is now a
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