Undead Labs Becomes Employee Owned and Keeps State of Decay 3

Big changes are happening for the team behind the popular zombie survival series. Undead Labs announced today that it has officially separated from Xbox to become an independent studio. In a move that is gaining a lot of attention, the Seattle based developer is now entirely worker owned. This shift marks the end of their acquisition by Microsoft that began back in 2018.

Despite this major structural change, the development of State of Decay 3 is moving forward as planned. Studio head Philip Holt expressed gratitude for the years spent with Xbox and noted that the studio remains in partnership with Microsoft for the upcoming title. The team is currently focused on hitting their goal of starting a closed beta for the game before the end of 2026.

Fans looking forward to the next installment can breathe a sigh of relief as the project is still on track for a 2027 launch. The game is slated to arrive on Xbox Series X and S, PC, and PlayStation 5. We are looking forward to seeing how this newfound independence shapes the future of the series and the studio as a whole.