Cyan, Creators of Myst, Lays Off Half of Staff Amidst Quest for New Project Funding

The team behind popular VR games like Myst, Riven, Firmament, and Obduction has unfortunately had to say goodbye to about half of their workforce, which includes about a dozen talented individuals.

Cyan released a statement explaining their decision:

“We’re regretfully announcing some tough news. Despite our attempts to prevent this, we at Cyan have had to make the hard choice to reduce our team size. This means we are letting go of twelve incredibly skilled team members, which is about half of our crew, effective by the end of March.”

The gaming industry has backed us into a corner, forcing us to balance the future health of our studio against the challenges of game development in 2025. We’ve tried to be as open as possible with our team about the turbulent times we’re facing and the obstacles in our way. Although the possibility of layoffs wasn’t unexpected, it still hurts deeply all around.

While we’ve tried to soften the blow for those involved by offering severance packages, we would encourage any developers out there who are seeking world-class talent to reach out.

Right now, our primary focus is securing funds for our next project to get the studio back on track. We’ve been in this industry for a long time and have weathered storms before. It’s our earnest hope to continue doing what we excel at—providing the unique experiences that only Cyan can offer.

As always, our heartfelt thanks go out to our incredible player community for their unwavering love and support.

The announcement specifically mentions their need for financial backing, though it doesn’t directly state a focus on VR. Notably, Cyan is one of the few studios with significant experience in developing VR games using hand-tracking technology.

It really poses the question—why are major players like Apple, Meta, Google, Valve, and Sony not stepping in to help fund companies like Cyan to create more VR content?