Gaming tech specialists Digital Foundry have gone indie. The YouTube channel introduced it’s parted methods with its new proprietor and can strike out by itself. The group’s technical breakdowns of how new video games run throughout totally different consoles and PC {hardware} have turn out to be the trade customary for a lot of followers and sport builders. “What this implies is that any more, all points of DF are determined upon by DF,” the most recent Digital Foundry Direct states. “We reply to no person however you, the viewers.”
Digital Foundry was based again within the early 2000s by Richard Leadbetter and has lengthy printed its analyses on Eurogamer. ReedPop acquired a stake when it launched a YouTube channel in 2015 and it was later bought by IGN alongside a number of different European websites within the Gamer Community in Could 2024. He and the crew of half a dozen contributors are greatest identified for his or her technical opinions of recent releases and the weekly Digital Foundry Direct podcast the place they dissect the most recent developments in gaming expertise and efficiency.
On the most recent episode of the podcast the place the information was introduced, Leadbetter stated IGN‘s acquisition allowed Digital Foundry the chance to purchase out roughly 50 p.c of the corporate’s excellent shares and take it unbiased with assist from exterior investor Rupert Loman (the unique cofounder of Eurogamer). As a part of the deal, the again catalog of Eurogamer Digital Foundry posts can even belong to the group. The Patreon supporter program will now be the first funding behind the enterprise.
We’re excited and proud to announce that Digital Foundry is now totally unbiased, having parted methods amicably with IGN. On this DF Direct Particular, we share our ideas and aspirations for the way forward for the channel: pic.twitter.com/eBPZ7bQfcD
— Digital Foundry (@digitalfoundry) August 7, 2025
The crew, which at present consists of Leadbetter, Will Judd, John Linneman, Oliver Mackenzie, Tom Morgan, Alex Battaglia, and Audi Sorlie, stated they are going to be constructing a wholly new web site to host their work on and be doubling down on retro and PC gaming evaluation. “One thing I’ve thought we’ve actually kindled right here at DF is that we have now a fantastic dialogue with builders, each the {hardware} builders and software program builders, and we put that out on the channel within the type of interviews, in addition to in our movies for reviewing merchandise, video games, and so forth.” Battaglia stated. “We offer suggestions that we give immediately not solely within the video itself but additionally behind the scenes again to builders to see if we are able to really change the product and make it higher by way of video games and we’ve carried out so in lots of events.”
Digital Foundry going unbiased comes as extra audience-supported video games media retailers sprout up, usually following chaotic gross sales, closures, or fights with administration. A few of these embrace Second Wind, Aftermath, Remap, and Big Bomb, which just lately managed an identical deal to purchase itself again from current proprietor Fandom.
