On March 14, Eurogamer (opens in a new tab) and GamesIndustry.biz (opens in a new tab) reported on a ZA/UM press release declaring the resolution of its legal dispute with Disco Elysium founding member and producer Kaur Kender, while also stating that the wrongful termination lawsuit of Disco Elysium project leader Robert Kurvitz , and the main artist, Aleksander Rostov, was dismissed for lack of evidence. . Since then, Kurvitz and “Sander Taal” (GamesIndustry.biz indicates that this is a pseudonym used by Rostov) have responded, stating that they will continue legal action. Meanwhile, ZA/UM released the first Disco Elysium content update since the December 2021 “Jamais Vu” patch.
The ZA/UM saga, in brief
- 2000: ZA/UM initially merges as a collective of artists in Estonia.
- 2013: Robert Kurvitz publishes Sacred and Terrible Air, a novel and the first commercial work set on Elysium.
- 2016: First public reveal of Disco Elysium as “No Truce With the Furies” (archived to Reddit) with release scheduled for EOY 2016. Producer Kaur Kender appears to have been involved from the early stages, with eventual investment from Tõnis Haavel and eventual director Executive Ilmar Kompus. Around this time, ZA/UM becomes a formalized game developer.
- 2019: Disco Elysium is released to critical acclaim.
- March 2021: Disco Elysium: The Final Cut, a definitive edition of the game releases.
- End of year 2021: Project lead Kurvitz, lead artist Aleksander Rostov, and Final Cut scribe/head writer Helen Hindpere are “involuntarily” leaving the company.
- October 2022: Disco Elysium editor and former ZA/UM member Martin Luiga reveals the trio’s departure, later confirmed by ZA/UM and a letter from Rostov co-signed by the other two.
- Trio alleges wrongful ouster as well as misappropriation of €4.8 million from ZA/UM to buy a majority stake in the company by CEO/investor Kompus and fellow investor Haavel with the support of the investor/producer by Disco Elysium Kaur Kender.
- Kompus, via ZA/UM, alleges a toxic management style, belittling of female employees, and other abuses by Kurvitz and Rostov. No specific incidents or details were elaborated, but GamesIndustry.biz (opens in a new tab) he cites an unknown number of anonymous sources to at least partially corroborate the narrative.
- Kender sues Kompus and ZA/UM for misappropriation of 4.8 million euros, Kurvitz and Rostov file their own separate lawsuit against the company.
- December 2022: Kender withdraws the lawsuit against ZA/UM, citing Kompus’ return of funds, without explaining why he had the €4.8 million in the first place.
This is the first public development in history since ZA/UM CEO Ilmar Kompus paid the company €4.8 million and Disco Elysium producer Kaur Kender dropped his own lawsuit against the developer. (opens in a new tab). In ZA/UM’s initial press release this week, he claimed that Kender has since paid Kompus for his legal fees, and GamesIndustry.biz shared a seemingly contrite message from the writer and entrepreneur:
“I am grateful for the years of trust and cooperation with the team, which made Disco Elysium a successful project,” Kender told GamesIndustry.biz. “After leaving my full-time position, I filed a lawsuit which, after looking at the facts, I realized was wrong.”
ZA/UM further claimed that Kurvitz and Rostov’s “wrongful dismissal” lawsuit against the company has been dismissed due to “lack of evidence”, but this only appears to be part of the full case against them, as the company is still he faces what he characterizes as a “series of unsubstantiated allegations by former employees” that “will fall apart under legal and factual scrutiny.”
A representative for Kurvitz and Rostov shared a four-part statement with PC Gamer in response to ZA/UM’s claims. “The press release is incorrect and misleading in several respects and seeks to unfairly paint us, Robert Kurvitz and Sander Taal, the remaining minority shareholders in ZA/UM, as mere disgruntled employees,” the statement begins.
Kurvitz and Rostov further deny that their labor claims against ZA/UM have been withdrawn for lack of evidence. “They were not. We see our firing as part of a larger campaign against us and will pursue legal options accordingly.”
The pair also point to the strange circumstances surrounding the €4.8 million withdrawn and much later returned to ZA/UM by CEO Kompus, the subject of Kaur Kender’s lawsuit. “Kender’s lawsuit was based on the misuse of ZA/UM funds (4.8 million euros) by the majority shareholders Kompus and Haavel to increase their own stake in the company.” Kurvitz and Rostov explain. “In the press release, Kompus and Haavel admit to this misuse, arguing only that the money has been ‘returned to ZA/UM.’ However, returning the stolen money does not undo the crime; here, it does not undo most that Kompus and Haavel have illegally won in ZA/UM.”
“Kompus and Haavel silenced Kender on this matter, but they won’t silence us,” the pair conclude. “Unlike Kender, we have not participated in the looting of ZA/UM, and Kompus and Haavel have no power over us.”
The full stop paints Kender as an adversary to Kurvitz, Rostov, and Hindpere (the latter of whom is not part of the lawsuit, but has indicated support from fellow developers). In a Rostov Medium post co-signed by the other two last year, the artist claims that the expulsion and misappropriation of 4.8 million euros was “perpetrated by Ilmar Kompus and Tõnis Haavel with the support of Kaur Kender, another minority shareholder”.
I tried the new mode! Ahaha, this is so much fun, I’m glad you guys are so in touch with us fans! from r/DiscoElysium
Two days after ZA/UM’s initial press release, the company launched a “collage mode” (opens in a new tab) for the game, a Garry’s Mod-style combination of photo mode, model viewer, and sandbox. While innocuous enough on its own, its timing with new developments in the legal battle over ZA/UM has elicited heated reactions from fans. by Disco Elysium.
One of the highest rated posts. (opens in a new tab) on the latter days subreddit Disco Elysium uses the new mode to showcase a corporate character from the game announcing their new feature while others encourage fans to hack the game. Looking at answers (opens in a new tab) To the announcement of the collage mode on Twitter, many criticize it as a tonal clash with the game, or even accuse it of being a distraction from the ongoing legal dispute over ownership of Disco Elysium. One reply it was simply a screenshot of the character Joyce Messier reflecting on how criticism of capitalism only ends up reinforcing capitalism, drawing a parallel to the politics of the game and the current state.
For now, as before, the future of one of our favorite games of all time remains uncertain. ZA/UM is hiring, but it’s unclear how much leeway the studio has with Kurvitz and Rostov still pursuing legal action, while the artists’ own path to any kind of victory or IP recovery is murky and no doubt expensive.