Undead Labs

Undead Labs LLC

Logo since 2024

Type| Subsidiary
Industry| Video games
Founded| November 23, 2009; 16 years ago (2009-11-23)
Founder| Jeff Strain
Headquarters|

Seattle, Washington

Number of locations

| 3 (2024)

Key people

| Philip Holt (studio head)
Products| State of Decay series

Number of employees

| ~60[1] (2018)
Parent| Xbox Game Studios (2018–present)
Website| undeadlabs.com

Undead Labs LLC is an American video game developer based in Seattle, Washington. The company was founded in November 2009 by Jeff Strain and developed the State of Decay series. In 2018, Undead Labs became part of Microsoft Studios (now known as Xbox Game Studios).

## Contents

* 1 History
* 2 Games developed
* 2.1 Cancelled
* 3 References
* 4 External links

## History

Undead Labs was founded on November 23, 2009, by Jeff Strain, with the sole focus on zombie-based games.[2] On February 3, 2011, Undead Labs announced that they were partnering with Microsoft Game Studios to publish their games on the Xbox 360 and now also the Xbox One.[3] This decision was made after most of the other publishers who showed interest in their games were requesting what they described as "World of Warcraft clones".[4] The first game State of Decay was released on the Xbox 360 on June 5, 2013, and on Microsoft Windows on November 5, 2013.[5][6][7]

On January 11, 2014, it was announced that Undead Labs has signed a multi-year, multi-title agreement with Microsoft Studios.[8] Jeff Strain stated that the first State of Decay was "just the start of (Undead Labs') long-term ambitions", and spoke of many future titles potentially entering the franchise.[9]

Moonrise was shut down at the end of 2015.[10]

At E3 2018, Microsoft announced they had entered into an agreement to acquire Undead Labs into Microsoft Studios.[11] In 2020, the studio announced their next title State of Decay 3 for Xbox Series X/S and PC.[12] In July 2021 Undead Labs opened a second studio in Orlando, Florida focused on developing animation technology in Unreal Engine 5 for Undead Labs as well as for other studios under the Xbox Game Studios banner.[13] Strain left the company by October 2021 and founded another studio, Possibility Space.[14]

Undead Labs logo from 2009-2024

A 2022 investigation by Kotaku reported on a sexist studio culture, which was abetted by Philip Holt, the new studio head who replaced Strain, and then-head of HR Anne Schlosser.[15] Schlosser was removed after a Microsoft HR investigation. The toxic work environment, which continued after Schlosser's departure, led to a high employee turnover rate, especially among experienced staff. These issues, combined with a lack of design vision, contributed to extensive delays in the development of State of Decay 3.[15] Employees also blamed Microsoft for not living up to its goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion by not responding to reports of abuse in a timely manner.[15]

On June 9, 2024, Undead Labs was rebranded with a new logo and website following the Xbox Showcase, where the company showed its first gameplay trailer for State of Decay 3.[16]

## Games developed

Year  | Title  | Platform(s)

|
|

2013  | State of Decay | Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One
2018  | State of Decay 2 | Windows, Xbox One
TBA  | State of Decay 3 | Windows, Xbox Series X

### Cancelled

Title  | Platform(s)

|

Moonrise (video game)  | Android, iOS, Windows, MacOS

## References

1. ↑ "Birth of a video game: How a small Seattle studio creates a sequel to a smash hit — with Microsoft's help". The Seattle Times. 25 May 2018. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/technology/birth-of-a-video-game-how-a-small-seattle-shop-creates-a-sequel-to-a-smash-hit-with-some-help-from-giant-microsoft/.
2. ↑ Brice, Kath (23 November 2009). "ArenaNet founder Jeff Strain opens new studio Undead Labs" (in en). https://www.gamesindustry.biz/arenanet-founder-jeff-strain-opens-new-studio-undead-labs.
3. ↑ "Undead Labs and Microsoft game studios to create zombie...". Undead Labs. February 3, 2011. http://undeadlabs.com/2011/02/news/undead-labs-and-microsoft-game-studios-to-create-zombie-survival-franchise-on-xbox-360/.
4. ↑ "Rude QA 2". Undead Labs. February 3, 2011. http://undeadlabs.com/2011/02/news/rude-qa-2/.
5. ↑ Rosenburg, Adam (February 2, 2011). "'Class3' Coming To Xbox Live Arcade". MTV Multiplayer. http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2011/02/04/open-world-zombie-survival-game-class3-coming-to-xbox-live-arcade/.
6. ↑ McElroy, Griffon (February 3, 2011). "Jeff Strain Shares His Vision for Class3, a Different Kind of Zombie Game". Joystiq. http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/03/class3-interview-jeff-strain/.
7. ↑ Weathers, Sanya (August 31, 2012). "Faq". Undead Labs. http://undeadlabs.com/forums/showthread.php?541-Faq.
8. ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (January 11, 2014). "State of Decay dev signs multi-year agreement with Microsoft". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-01-11-state-of-decay-dev-signs-multi-year-agreement-with-microsoft.
9. ↑ Sarkar, Samit (April 20, 2014). "State of Decay's Lifeline DLC is just the start of Undead Labs' 'long-term ambitions'". Polygon. http://www.polygon.com/2014/4/20/5628554/state-of-decay-lifeline-preview-undead-labs-interview.
10. ↑ Frank, Allegra (2015-09-02). "Sun sets on Pokémon-inspired Moonrise as players switch off" (in en-US). https://www.polygon.com/2015/9/2/9248147/moonrise-cancelled-undead-labs.
11. ↑ Minotti, Mike (June 10, 2018). "Microsoft acquires State of Decay 2 studio Undead Labs". https://venturebeat.com/2018/06/10/microsoft-acquires-state-of-decay-2-studio-undead-labs/.
12. ↑ Kim, Matt (July 23, 2021). "State of Decay 3 Announced". https://www.ign.com/articles/xbox-game-showcase-state-of-decay-2. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
13. ↑ Polumba, Alessio (January 3, 2022). "New Undead Labs Team to Focus on Cross-Studio Animation Technology for Xbox Game Studios". wccftech. https://wccftech.com/new-undead-labs-team-to-focus-on-cross-studio-animation-technology-for-xbox-game-studios/.
14. ↑ McCaffrey, Ryan (October 13, 2021). "State of Decay Studio Founder Jeff Strain Starts New Studio, Possibility Space". https://www.ign.com/articles/possibility-space-new-studio-jeff-strain-undead-labs-microsoft-blizzard-arenanet.
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Gach, Ethan (2022-03-31). "Allegations Of Sexism, Bullying, And Burnout: Inside The Microsoft Studio Behind State Of Decay 3". https://kotaku.com/state-of-decay-3-xbox-series-x-s-sexism-microsoft-undea-1848728682.
16. ↑ "Xbox leak confirms at least one major exclusive game for tomorrow's Xbox Games Showcase" (in en). 2024-06-09. https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/xbox-leak-confirms-at-least-one-major-exclusive-game-for-tomorrows-xbox-games-showcase.

## External links

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Xbox Game Studios

Franchises|

* Age of Empires
* Banjo-Kazooie
* Battletoads
* Blinx
* Cobalt
* Conker
* Crackdown
* Crimson Skies
* Fable
* Forza
* Gears of War
* Halo
* Hexic
* Hydro Thunder
* Killer Instinct
* Kinect Party
* Kinect Sports
* Lips
* Microsoft Flight Simulator
* Minecraft
* Perfect Dark
* Pillars of Eternity
* Project Gotham Racing
* Psychonauts
* R.C. Pro-Am
* Sabreman
* Shadowrun
* State of Decay
* The Bard's Tale
* Viva Piñata
* Wasteland
* Zoo Tycoon

Subsidiaries|

| Current|

* 343 Industries
* The Coalition
* Compulsion Games
* Double Fine
* inXile Entertainment
* Mojang Studios
* Ninja Theory
* Obsidian Entertainment
* Playground Games
* Rare
* Turn 10 Studios
* Undead Labs

|

Former|

* Aces Game Studio
* BigPark
* Bungie
* Digital Anvil
* Ensemble Studios
* FASA Studio
* Lift London
* Lionhead Studios
* Press Play
* Twisted Pixel Games
* Xbox Entertainment Studios

People|

* Phil Spencer
* Rod Fergusson
* Brian Fargo
* Larry Hryb
* Bonnie Ross
* Tim Schafer
* Joseph Staten
* Feargus Urquhart

Related|

* List of Xbox Game Studios video games
* MSN Games

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