After divesting from Thunderful in 2024, the until-now independent indie publisher Headup has been fully acquired by Reforged Studios from Malta. Dieter Schoeller will remain in charge while also becoming Chief Publishing Officer at group level. No jobs are supposed to be lost.
After it successfully bought itself out of the Thunderful Group in 2024, publisher Headup from Düren, Germany is back into a new mother company’s folds: Reforged Studios from Malta has fully acquired the company. Headup will act as indie publishing platform within the network of Reforged. Headup founder Dieter Schoeller will remain in charge, while also becoming Chief Publishing Officer at group level, reporting directly to the founders. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Headup’s team remains unchanged, with no current job losses or redundancies as part of the acquisition.
Peter van der Watt, CEO of Reforged Studios: “Headup has built one of the most respected and carefully curated portfolios in independent publishing. Their reputation has been earned through consistent developer advocacy and a clear editorial vision. Bringing that capability into Reforged materially strengthens our publishing platform and accelerates our long–term growth strategy.
This acquisition is not about consolidation for its own sake. It is about building a durable publishing home for ambitious independent creators.”
Dieter Schoeller, Founder of Headup: “This wasn’t about chasing scale – it was about finding the right people. Reforged is built by people who genuinely understand games, and that alignment allows us to grow without losing what makes Headup special.”
Headup is the indie games publisher behind games like Bridge Constructor, Pumpkin Jack, Look Mum No Computer, Twiggle’s Grove and more. Currently, they are publishing Super Meat Boy 3D by Essen company Sluggerfly.
