Disco Elysium Devs Cast a Union Spell: Is This the Avalanche We've Been Waiting For, Mate?
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
The developers behind *Disco Elysium* at ZA/UM have formed the UK's first recognised videogame union, a significant move amidst the studio's turbulent history and a wave of industry layoffs, potentially heralding a new era for worker rights in games.
Right, so you know how sometimes you try to fix a tiny glitch and accidentally summon a bloody dragon? Well, the brilliant, chaotic minds behind *Disco Elysium* at ZA/UM have just pulled off something equally monumental, and arguably far more constructive, for the UK games industry. They've formed what they're calling the **'first recognised videogame workplace union'** in the UK, operating under the wing of the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain.
Fair warning: this news sounds relatively dry on the surface, but stick with me because it’s about to get interesting – and potentially, massively significant. This isn't just about a single studio; it's about the ever-present tension between creative ambition, corporate realities, and the folks who actually make the magic happen.
For anyone who’s been following the winding, often bewildering saga of ZA/UM, this comes as yet another twist in a tale wilder than most RPG quest lines. We're talking about a studio that, despite giving us a genuine masterpiece in *Disco Elysium*, has been heavily associated with a string of unfortunate events: toxic layoffs, alleged fraud, and what I can only describe as a diasporic feuding that’s seen original talent scatter like a botched teleportation spell. So, for a union to emerge from that particular cauldron? Bloody hell, that's something, isn't it?
The unionised workers, in a press release passed along by *Game Developer*, highlighted how this 'recognition process provides workers and management with a strong framework to engage and negotiate on workplace-related matters.' A committee of elected representatives will now regularly meet with management, backed by union officials. Essentially, it's about giving the dev team a proper voice at the table, a bit like equipping your party with a new, much-needed charisma stat.
Now, what’s really driving this, beyond the internal ZA/UM drama, is the elephant in the digital room: **job security**. The past couple of years have seen a staggering quantity of mass layoffs across the gaming industry, leaving countless talented folks staring down the barrel of unemployment. It's like the industry itself has been hit by a critical failure, and the union aims to patch things up.
Eugenia Peruzzo, an organising officer of the IWGB Game Workers Union, sounds pretty chuffed about it all, and cautiously optimistic, much like myself when I spot a new indie gem. She reckons these recognition agreements 'lay the groundwork for a healthy relationship between the company and workers and rebalance the scale of powers after a few terrible years for the game industry.' And she’s not stopping there, mate. Peruzzo is confident more UK videogame workers will unionise, declaring, 'Rest assured that this is not a one off, but this is an avalanche in the making.' An avalanche, eh? Sounds like a proper boss fight in the making for corporate structures, and frankly, I'm here for the spectacle.
Of course, there are always two sides to every story, especially when it comes to internal studio politics. *GamesIndustry.biz* did a much fuller deep-dive, including an interview with current ZA/UM president and Private Division co-founder Ed Tomaszewski. He observed that when they discussed the union, 'it was clear that recognising a union was core to our values as a studio, to be providing fair working practices.' Which, on paper, sounds lovely, doesn’t it? Very enlightened. But then, he also 'pushes back a little against some of the accusations or "characterisations" levelled at ZA/UM by certain former staff.' See? Always a twist. I reckon those former staff will be doing a bit of pushing back themselves, and the digital tea leaves suggest this particular saga is far from over.
Despite the turbulence, ZA/UM still has nearly 100 people on the books, even after laying off a quarter of the studio and cancelling a *Disco Elysium* expansion early last year. Their current project is *Zero Parades*, a colourful espionage CRPG that’s been summarised as 'Disco Elysium in glasses and a moustache.' Intriguing, but one can’t help but wonder if it’s truly inspired or a bit beholden to its predecessor, given the circumstances.
And what about the scattered talent, the original architects of *Disco Elysium*'s magic? They've splintered off, forming new studios and working on what can only be described as spiritual successors, creating a fascinating network of creative spin-offs:
* Over at **Summer Eternal**, former ZA/UM writers Argo Tuulik and Dora Klindžic are brewing *Red Rooster*, recently teased in a rather curious book anthology. * **Longdue Games** is cooking up *Hopetown*, a 'psychogeogratuitous RPG,' featuring ZA/UM’s co-founder Martin Luiga and Piotr Sobolewski from Knights of Unity. Nic from the original article brilliantly summarised it as 'Nathan Barley on the bus.' * **Dark Math Games** boasts former *Disco* motion graphic designer Timo Albert and former ZA/UM producer and investor Kaur Kender, making the recently renamed *Tangerine Antarctic*, which apparently offers a 'dopamine buffet.' Sounds like my kind of game, honestly. * And let’s not forget former *Disco* writer Robert Kurvitz and artist Aleksander Rostov, who are making *something* at their new outfit **Red Info**. What that 'something' is remains a mystery, like a hidden quest giver yet to be discovered.
So, while ZA/UM navigates its new unionised reality and crafts *Zero Parades*, the creative spirit of *Disco Elysium* is blossoming in several fascinating, fragmented directions. It’s a bit like seeing a single powerful spell explode into a dozen equally intriguing, if smaller, magical effects.
What does all this mean for us, the gamers? Well, a more stable, respected, and fairly treated development workforce often leads to better games. Less burnout, more creative freedom, more sustainable development – that's the dream, isn't it? This move by ZA/UM, detailed first by Edwin Evans-Thirlwell over at *Rock Paper Shotgun*, could genuinely be the first rumble of that 'avalanche' Peruzzo mentioned. And frankly, after the turbulent times the industry has faced, a bit of positive, ground-up change is a sight for sore eyes. It's still early days, and skepticism is a wizard's best friend, but this feels like a step in a genuinely interesting, optimistically chaotic direction. Now, what happens next? Only time, and perhaps a few more spells, will tell.
Tags: game-development, unionization, industry-news, worker-rights, zaum
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun