# Disco Elysium Dev ZA/UM Announces Layoffs Affecting Up to 32 Staff

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/disco-elysium-dev-za-um-announces-layoffs-affecting-up-to-32-staff/
- Published: 2026-07-18T16:52:24+00:00
- Updated: 2026-07-21T01:14:51+00:00
- Original publisher: IGN
- Original article: https://www.ign.com/articles/disco-elysium-dev-zaum-announces-layoffs-affecting-up-to-32-staff
- Topics: Software, Technology

## Key points

- ZA/UM cuts up to 32 jobs after new game's weak sales
- Latest blow follows years of legal disputes and departures
- Studio's 2024 layoffs also saw a DLC cancelled

## Summary

Disco Elysium developer ZA/UM has announced layoffs affecting up to 32 staff, just two months after releasing its latest title, Zero Parades: For Dead Spies. The UK-based studio said the game's commercial performance had not been strong enough to sustain a studio of its current size, despite critical acclaim, marking another setback for a company that has faced years of internal turmoil.

The cuts affect employees across all departments, and ZA/UM said it will consult with its Workers' Alliance union throughout the process, insisting its "artistic standards remain unchanged". This follows a turbulent few years for the studio, including a 2022 legal dispute involving former key developers Robert Kurvitz and Aleksander Rostov, the departure of several staff to spinoff studios, and a previous round of layoffs in 2024 affecting around 24 employees, which also saw a planned Disco Elysium expansion cancelled. Zero Parades: For Dead Spies launched on 21 May 2026 for PC and PS5, scoring 83 on Metacritic, below the acclaim of its predecessor Disco Elysium.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.