Contradictory declarations around what took place at Disco Elysium workshop ZA/UM proceed, as one side declares scams and also the various other declares poisonous monitoring.
Earlier today, game supervisor Robert Kurvitz and also art supervisor Aleksander Rostov – both of whom were dislodged of the business in 2021 – made a Medium post (opens up in brand-new tab) affirming criminal transgression from some ZA/UM investors.
According to the article, most of shares in ZA/UM – or, extra effectively, Zaum Studio OÜ – were formerly possessed by Margus Linnamäe. The article claims that in 2021, Linnamäe’s shares were gotten by Tütreke OÜ, a holding business possessed by Ilmar Kompus and also Tõnis Haavel. Kurvitz and also Rostov affirm that Tütreke OÜ acquired that bulk risk by fraudulently drawing funds from ZA/UM itself to make the acquisition.
“We believe the money used by Tütreke OÜ to buy the majority stake was taken illegally from Zaum Studio OÜ itself, money that belonged to the studio and all shareholders but was used for the benefit of one,” Kurvitz and also Rostov compose. “Money that should have gone towards making the sequel. We believe that these actions – which in our view, and the view of our lawyers, amount to criminal wrongdoing punishable by up to three years imprisonment – were perpetrated by Ilmar Kompus and Tõnis Haavel with support from Kaur Kender, another minority shareholder.”
Kurvitz and also Rostov state they are evaluating their lawful choices. “Both civil claims and criminal charges are on the table – in Estonia and the United Kingdom,” they state.
Shortly afterwards article went live, GamesIndustry.biz (opens up in brand-new tab) released an “exclusive statement” from ZA/UM regarding the conflict. While the declaration does not call particular people, it shares the “reasons for the justified firings of some former ZA/UM Studio team members.” Earlier records kept in mind that Kurvitz, Rostov, and writer Helen Hindpere were the developers “involuntarily” released from ZA/UM.
ZA/UM “denies any claim of financial malfeasance or fraud that is being held against us.” It declares that the (once again, unrevealed in the declaration) programmers that were release produced “a toxic work environment that is antithetical to the ZA/UM culture and team productivity,” and also participated in “misconduct in interacting with other colleagues that includes verbal abuse and gender discrimination.”
The declaration likewise declares that the terminated programmers tried “to illegally sell to other gaming companies ZA/UM’s intellectual property with the aim of undermining the rest of the team.” The legal rights to the Disco Elysium IP have actually turned up in various other current records, as Kurvitz recently filed suit against ZA/UM. Studio founder, Martin Luiga, that exposed the shootings of the 3 programmers to begin with, suggested the suit is an effort from Kurvitz to retain the rights to Disco Elysium.
Alongside the magazine of ZA/UM’s declaration, GamesIndustry.biz talked with some confidential resources at the workshop, among which explained the scenario as “CEO corporate scheming on one side, a toxic auteur on the other.” Another stated it’s “not black and white.”
A Disco Elysium TV series has actually remained in the benefit a long time.
Source: gamesradar.com
