Studio ZA/UM announced layoffs affecting up to 32 employees across all departments on July 17, 2026, citing the commercial underperformance of its game Zero Parades: For Dead Spies [1, 2, 3].
Zero Parades, released in May 2026 as a follow-up to the critically acclaimed 2019 title Disco Elysium, received strong critical praise but failed to achieve sales needed to maintain the studio’s existing size [1, 3]. The studio said, "Its commercial performance has not enabled us to sustain a studio of our current size. We have served redundancy or at-risk notices impacting up to 32 of our colleagues across all departments at ZA/UM Studio" [3].
ZA/UM acknowledged the contributions of laid-off employees, stating their "work has made a lasting difference and left its mark on Zero Parades: For Dead Spies, and the studio as a whole. We will persist" [1]. The process involved cooperation with the ZA/UM Workers’ Alliance, the studio’s union [1, 2].
This is not the first downsizing for ZA/UM in recent years. In 2024, the studio conducted layoffs affecting up to 24 employees [1].
After Disco Elysium’s release, the studio faced turmoil including the ousting of key creative staff such as lead designer Robert Kurvitz, which sparked legal disputes and controversy [1, 2, 3]. These departures led to cancellations of multiple projects and the spin-off of three separate studios aiming to develop successors to the original game [2].
Social media feedback to the layoff announcement skewed unsympathetic toward ZA/UM’s leadership, with many blaming them for the studio’s struggles and the failure of Zero Parades to meet sales expectations [3].
ZA/UM plans to release a PlayStation 5 version of Zero Parades later in 2026, aiming to reach a broader audience [1].
