About Chucklefish
What is Chucklefish?
Chucklefish is an independent UK game developer and publisher based in London, founded in 2011 by Finn Brice. The studio started as a handful of first-time developers spread across the globe, with no studio experience or funding — just an ambitious idea for a massive space game, Starbound. Funded by community support on Steam Early Access, Chucklefish moved out of bedrooms and into a London office in 2014.
Since then the studio has shipped Wargroove and Wargroove 2 in-house, served as publisher for ConcernedApe's Stardew Valley and Pixpil's Eastward, and is currently developing Witchbrook, Wildekin, and Kyora. The studio has also published Loco Motive, Wildfrost, Starmancer, Pathway, Inmost, and Timespinner — keeping the team independent through 13+ years of operation.
Where will I work?
Chucklefish is based in London with a cosy office the team moved into in 2014. Per the studio's about page, some of the team work 100% remotely within the UK while others come into the London office — a true hybrid setup.
What is the Chucklefish team like?
The public team page lists 18 named full-time staff (DB shows ~20). The leadership group includes Finn Brice (Founder/Director), Donna (Chief Operating Officer), Rodrigo (Chief Technology Officer), Steph (Chief Creative Officer), and Katy (Marketing Director), supported by Producers, Product Leads, Artists, a Senior Artist, a Technical Designer, a Community Manager, and an Office Manager. Communications/Product Lead Alexis Trust spoke publicly to Game Developer magazine in 2023 about the success of the studio's four-day week.
Work-Life Balance
Chucklefish operates a four-day work week with no drop in pay. Per Game Developer (Sept 2022) and MCV/DEVELOP: "The company had made several other moves to make life better for its employees... including a no-crunch policy and a move to a four day work week with no drop in overall pay." The four-day model has been in place since at least late 2021 and was reported in 2023 as "incredibly successful." Fridays are off. Holiday allowance is 28 days plus UK bank holidays.
During the 2022 cost-of-living crisis, Chucklefish gave every employee a £4,000 raise (on top of a 10% raise in April 2022) — a concrete signal of the studio's people-first stance alongside the four-day week and no-crunch policy.
Perks and Benefits
- 4-day work week (32 hours, Fridays off) with full pay
- 28 days holiday plus UK bank holidays
- No-crunch policy (publicly stated, reported in trade press)
- Hybrid working: choose 100% remote within the UK or work from the London office
- Bootstrapped and independent — no external investor pressure on creative direction
- UK workplace pension (auto-enrolment)
- Investment in staff training and development
- Equipment provided
- Parental leave (UK statutory)