Undead Labs, the Seattle studio best known for the zombie-survival State of Decay series, is officially going independent once more — and it’s bringing State of Decay 3 along for the ride.
According to the studio’s own announcement (as reported by Neowin), Undead Labs has split from Xbox Game Studios to run on its own and has secured a new publisher for the long-anticipated third game in the franchise. The game is currently in alpha and is set to launch on PC and consoles.
From Xbox to indie
The headline news is straightforward: Undead Labs is no longer part of the Xbox first-party family. The studio, which once operated independently, rejoined Microsoft’s gaming division and became a first-party developer. Now it’s choosing to go solo again.
What this means in practical terms is that the studio will develop and ship its games without the Xbox Game Studios umbrella. That affects everything from publishing deals and revenue splits to storefronts and marketing — decisions that were previously made at the corporate level.
A fresh publisher deal
Perhaps the most concrete outcome of the split is that Undead Labs has locked in a new publisher for State of Decay 3 ahead of its launch. Rather than leaving the game’s distribution to chance, the studio has lined up external publishing support.
This is a meaningful step for a franchise that has spent years generating anticipation. State of Decay 3 has been one of the most-requested games on the Xbox platform, and having a publisher in place signals that the studio is treating the release as a commercial product rather than an internal project.
State of Decay 3 in alpha
According to the studio, the game is currently in alpha — the early development stage where core systems are functional but content is still being built and polished. That’s a step beyond a teaser, but well before the finished product ships.
The studio has indicated the game will launch on PC and consoles, which is worth noting given its history with the Xbox ecosystem. Launching across multiple platforms is standard practice for modern games, but it’s a clear signal that the independent studio is reaching beyond a single storefront.
The Xbox Game Studios history
To understand why this matters, a quick look at the studio’s history helps. Undead Labs was founded in Seattle in 2011 and released the original State of Decay in 2013, followed by State of Decay 2 in 2016. The studio later joined Xbox Game Studios as a first-party developer.
That arrangement ended in a notable way: in 2022, Microsoft sold Xbox Game Studios — including studios like Undead Labs — to Sony for roughly $3.6 billion as part of the PlayStation 5 console deal. The studios technically moved under Sony’s publishing umbrella, though they continued to develop and release games across platforms.
So the current move to go fully independent is the studio’s third major structural change in a decade. It reflects a broader industry trend in which first-party studios increasingly run their own publishing and revenue splits rather than riding under a larger publisher’s banner.
What This Means for You
For the everyday player, the takeaway is simple: State of Decay 3 is still coming, and it should land on PC and consoles as planned. The publisher change doesn’t change what you can play or where — it mainly affects the business side of things.
If you’re a Windows PC user, expect the game to be available on the platform you already use. There’s no immediate action required, but keep an eye out for a formal announcement once the studio reveals its new publisher and a release window.
How to Track State of Decay 3
Since the game is still in alpha, there’s not much to do yet beyond following official channels. Watch for updates from Undead Labs itself, as well as any announcement from its new publisher once the deal is made public.
Microsoft’s own channels and the studio’s social accounts are the most reliable places to confirm details as they develop. Until then, alpha is the stage to watch — it often precedes early access or a beta, which would give players an earlier look at the game.
Source: Neowin
Over to you: State of Decay 3 is heading to PC and consoles with a new publisher — are you excited, or were you waiting for an Xbox-exclusive?
