Double Fine Announces 'Thank You Bus Driver' Under New Experimental Label

Double Fine Productions has announced its first new game since leaving Xbox, alongside plans for an indie Kickstarter project, putting Keeper on PlayStation 5, releasing a major update for Kiln, and teasing a hypothetical sequel to Brutal Legend. The newly revealed title is called Thank You Bus Driver and falls under the studio's newly formed Action Labs label, which is dedicated to weird and experimental games.

According to the studio's announcement, Thank You Bus Driver is a chaotic, fun-sized experience where players assume the role of a town bus driver attempting to navigate the day with minimal rule-breaking and maximum gratitude. Gameplay involves driving quickly, dealing with passengers, and tossing rule-breakers out of the bus to achieve ultimate appreciation. Following its announcement, the reveal video quickly gained traction, racking up over 250,000 views across various YouTube videos in a short timeframe, with more than 160,000 views on the official Double Fine account alone. This early reception outpaces lifetime views for previous announcements, such as the 66,000 views on the Kiln announcement trailer.

Despite the strong initial interest, the studio has currently only advertised a PC release for Thank You Bus Driver. This marks a notable shift as the first Double Fine game in many years not to launch on an Xbox platform. Whether the bus driving title will eventually make its way to consoles remains to be seen, though future ports could depend on the success of its initial PC launch.