2019 was the year Disco Elysium sent shockwaves throughout the gaming world. With its layered characters, otherworldly writing, and philosophical musings, Disco Elysium and its development studio, ZA/UM, enjoyed a seat at the head of the table. The 2019 Game Awards told the story of the game’s greatness.
Best Narrative. Fresh Indie Game. Best Role-Playing Game. Best Independent Game. All awards, won handily — with stiff competition in each category. Many people, to this day, argue that Disco Elysium should’ve been in the conversation for the coveted Game of the Year award, too. (But really, it made up for that by still being among the greatest, most impactful games of all time.)
You’d think after so much acclaim and success, ZA/UM would continue making games for years to come. Unfortunately, for the team of passionate artists and creatives, those dreams were dashed. Yes, ZA/UM technically still exists. But many of the people who defined the innovative studio have gone off to create other companies. So, the main question remains.
What the heck happened to Za/um?
After Disco Elysium, ZA/UM had major plans for the game’s future. A full-fledged sequel; a separate sci-fi RPG; a spin-off. Those goals were put on ice as a legal battle flared between the creators of DE and ZA/UM’s leadership. The ensuing conflict was… ugly, to put it lightly. But month after month, the legal standoff would have disastrous results for the company.
A project the studio was actively working on, codenamed “X7,” was abruptly canceled at the beginning of 2024. Following that, the writing team working on the game was laid off. One of the last remaining writers who worked on Disco Elysium, Argo Tuulik, did an interview with Sports Illustrated shortly after being let go. Speaking to the publication, Tuulik expressed that ZA/UM “will forever stay a one-game studio. The individuals of ZA/UM, the cultural movement, have left the corporate body behind like the King Cobra slithering out of its dead skin. Remember, we promised: Un jour je serai de retour près de toi.”
‘disco elysium’ — The aftermath
Further, in the wake of the mass exodus of Disco Elysium developers, three development studios emerged. First is Red Info, founded by Robert Kurvitz, the lead writer and designer of DE, and Aleksander Rostov, the game’s former art director. Then, there’s Longdue Games, comprised of 12 people — including former DE producers, as well as former Bungie and Rockstar developers. They’re working on a “psychogeographic RPG.”
Finally (yes, another one), there’s Dark Math Games. They’re working on XXX Nightshift, a game billed as “a true detective RPG.” It even has a cool trailer!
Basically, there are now four studios likely making Disco Elysium-esque games. And you know what? Perhaps this is the best timeline we’ve found ourselves in if this is the case. Indeed, I’ll gladly take as many deep, psychological RPGs as they’re willing to dish out!
The post What Happened To ZA/UM, The Studio Behind ‘Disco Elysium’? appeared first on VICE.
The post What Happened To ZA/UM, The Studio Behind ‘Disco Elysium’? appeared first on VICE.
