ZA/UM announced layoffs affecting up to 32 staff on July 17 after Zero Parades: For Dead Spies failed commercially despite critical acclaim. The spy thriller RPG launched May 21 but peaked at only 3,177 concurrent Steam players four days post-launch, dropping to roughly 500 daily.

The studio acknowledged the game's "commercial performance has not enabled us to sustain a studio of our current size," serving redundancy notices across all departments. ZA/UM pledged to consult with the ZA/UM Workers' Alliance throughout the process.

The cuts reflect a broader industry crisis. Xbox Game Studios eliminated 1,600 roles with another 1,600 pending, Sony conducted "significant" layoffs at Bungie after Destiny 2's shutdown, and 1047 Games reduced staff following Empulse's underwhelming debut.