Key information
State of Decay 3 was revealed early in 2020 due to concerns that Undead Labs might be absorbed or sold before showcasing its work to the world. Studio head Holt shared in an interview with The Game Business that a small team worked on the game in 2020, though development gained momentum starting in 2023.
The anxiety stemmed from Xbox's wave of acquisitions. Microsoft originally acquired Undead Labs alongside other studios in 2018. Holt noted that he feared Microsoft would move on to acquire larger companies, a prediction underlined when Xbox announced its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard in 2022.
Holt explained that the 2020 announcement trailer served as a statement of intent to place the game in the public domain, even though only a very small team was actively working on it at the time. State of Decay 2 launched two years prior to the initial reveal.
State of Decay 3 remains in active development and will be available on day one on Game Pass. The studio recently became independent, and development has been influenced by the post-launch updates of State of Decay 2.
