Heart Machine Developers Win Voluntary Union Recognition Ahead of GDC

Developers at Culver City's Heart Machine secured voluntary union recognition with Communications Workers of America Local 9003 ahead of GDC 2026, forming a wall-to-wall bargaining unit representing all 13 frontline employees at the studio behind Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash.

In February 2026, a supermajority of eligible Heart Machine workers presented management with a formal request for voluntary recognition, citing a desire to better advocate for their rights and benefits. Studio leadership agreed to the request, and CWA announced the recognition on March 9, the opening day of GDC's Festival of Gaming.

Senior environment artist Cameron Hughes, a CWA Local 9003 member, described the motivation in terms of creative stakes as much as labor ones. "The best video games come from teams of really talented people bringing their different experiences together to build something they'd want to play themselves," Hughes said. "Without everyone at the studio working in tandem, pieces of the vision get lost and the game suffers. Protecting that kind of creative collaboration is really important to us, and forming a union is one way we're making sure we can keep doing our best work."

Gameplay Tools Engineer Steph Aligbe, also a Local 9003 member, pointed to the broader industry climate as the catalyst for her involvement. "I decided to get involved in organizing my studio because I've seen so many peers in the industry stand up to protect the craft we all care so deeply about," Aligbe said. "Watching that momentum grow made me realize that if we love this work, we have to protect it, especially now."

The recognition comes months after Heart Machine ended development on Hyper Light Breaker, its most recent project, which remained in early access at the time development stopped. GamesIndustry.biz reported the bargaining unit formed following several rounds of layoffs, though neither Heart Machine nor CWA disclosed specific numbers of workers affected or the precise timing of those cuts.

CWA described voluntary recognition as a streamlined pathway to union recognition endorsed by the federal labor board, and framed Heart Machine's win as part of accelerating momentum across the game industry. The union noted that nearly 4,000 workers organized across Microsoft's video game studios over the past two years, with bargaining units now established at teams working on franchises including id Software, Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble, Diablo, and Overwatch.

Aligbe said the union's immediate focus is on the path to a first contract. "Our union is proud that our studio chose to voluntarily recognize our union and live up to its high-road labor values, and we look forward to working on a first contract that safeguards our workplace." The long-term goal, according to union members, is constructive dialogue with studio leadership aimed at improving working conditions for the full team.

CWA also noted that video game workers in the U.S. and Canada can join United Videogame Workers-CWA Local 9433, a direct-join formation the union describes as a training ground that has helped workers build the organizing skills and relationships needed to unionize their own studios regardless of current employer.

Heart Machine has not issued a public statement on the recognition beyond its agreement to the voluntary process, and no direct comment from studio management appeared in available reporting.