Developer ZA/UM might have had a vital hit with 2019’s Disco Elysium, nevertheless it stays a moderately small studio. And, at the least so far as author and VO director Jim Ashilevi is worried, that’s how issues ought to stay.
“I hope we’ll by no means turn into a triple-A studio,” he stated throughout a current interview with IGN.
ZA/UM presently employs just below 100 members of workers, a lot of whom work remotely from totally different locations internationally. Its has workplaces in Tallinn, Estonia; London, UK; and Porto, Portugal, and the corporate stays independently owned. Whereas that is admittedly a greater outfit than many indie builders get pleasure from, it’s nonetheless small-scale. And that’s how Ashilevi likes it.
“I believe we’re all the time deeply inspired and impressed by the indie scene as a result of that is the place the contemporary concepts come from,” he stated. “The avant-garde stuff all the time occurs on the fringes, and I hope we’ll by no means turn into a triple-A studio. Truthfully, even when Zero Parades sells 4 billion copies, I hope we’re smart sufficient to remain true to our core sensibilities and values as artists and storytellers.”
As a part of that dialog, Ashilevi provided his evaluation of the gaming panorama. “I believe it is grim on the market,” he stated. “I believe the business is in a actually tough place. Everyone knows that. However I do not suppose the business is in a tough place creatively. I believe, in a method, it is higher than ever. It is higher than ever earlier than as a result of anybody could make a sport that touches the hearts of tons of of thousands and thousands of individuals.”
The remark got here in reference to the success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which, whereas developed on a a lot larger finances than any of ZA/UM’s tasks, was 2025’s demonstration that there’s an unlimited urge for food for single-player, story-led video games produced outdoors of the mega-publishers’ circles.
“I believe the business has turn into much less gatekeep-y in a method,” he stated. “However that additionally presents one other drawback, which is how do you even start to advertise your sport, or ensure that it really finds its viewers? I believe actually the one factor you’ll be able to management is whether or not you are staying true to your personal imaginative and prescient and your personal voice.”
As we explored earlier this week, that imaginative and prescient has been ZA/UM’s “North Star” with regards to Zero Parades. “For that cause, I am already actually proud and proud of what we have completed,” says Ashilevi. “It is just like the response coming from the gamers – which is able to hopefully be optimistic, principally optimistic – is nearly simply a bonus at this level. The true worth I received out of it as a storyteller was simply attending to know my pals and colleagues a little higher and attending to know extra about what goes on of their hearts and minds and souls.”
For extra from ZA/UM, try the studio’s stance on utilizing AI, and why its new RPG resembles Disco Elysium so carefully.
Matt Purslow is IGN’s Government Editor of Options.