🍪 Unions Rise, PAYDAY Survives, Dune Cuts, Rock Band Ends

Hello there industry watchdogs, union-minded. Today in Game Cookies we dive into labor wins, sharp pivots, and the long tail of music licenses.

1) ZA/UM staff unionize after layoffs and turbulence

After cancellations and the public split with Disco Elysium’s original leads, UK workers at ZA/UM Studio have unionized under the IWGB – Independent Workers Union of Great Britain. Recognition means management will inform, consult, and negotiate on pay, pensions, working hours, and holiday. The studio reportedly grew back to ~90 staff after earlier redundancies, aiming to stabilize after a volatile run.

📢 “We like being here. We want to continue being here. So let’s try and get a seat at the table in the big management meetings.” — Poppy I., Comms Manager & Union Rep

📢 “Things are not bad here. We have it pretty good, but let’s work together to make it even better.” — Ed T. , ZA/UM President

🦊 Kiki: Yeah, of course they unionized. You can’t just nuke projects, fire a quarter of your studio, and expect people to keep smiling. It’s not radical, it’s survival. Honestly, it’s about time.

🍪 Chip: Holding a tiny protest sign: “Seat at the Table.”

2) Starbreeze kills Project Baxter, bets the house on PAYDAY

Starbreeze Entertainment is shutting down Baxter, taking a SEK 255M impairment and laying off ~44 staff, while funneling everything into PAYDAY. The studio wants to be cash-flow positive by 2026.

📢 “PAYDAY is more than a game — it’s a genre we created and continue to lead.” — Adolf Kristjansson, CEO

📢 “This was a difficult but necessary decision.” — Kristjansson

🦊 Kiki: Well, duh. PAYDAY is literally the only thing keeping the lights on. Nobody’s shocked. The smart play now is just do it better, faster, and stop pretending Baxter was ever the future.

🍪 Chip: Robber mask, guarding an almost-empty piggy bank.

3) Funcom lays off staff after biggest launch ever, Dune: Awakening

Despite selling 1M copies in two weeks, Funcom is laying off staff as it shifts to live ops and preps console releases. Numbers weren’t shared.

📢 “The game has already shown incredible potential… but this also means having to say goodbye to cherished colleagues.” — Funcom statement

📢 “The transition from development to long-term live operation… requires restructuring.” — Funcom

🦊 Kiki: Imagine: biggest launch in your studio’s history… and boom, layoffs. Welcome to 2025. It’s standard “live ops logic” — smaller team, tighter scope. Doesn’t make it feel any less gutting for the people cut loose.

🍪 Chip: Calendar open to “Roadmap,” sticking on milestone stickers.

4) Hasbro plants Wizards of the Coast studio in Montréal

A new Wizards of the Coast Studios Inc. hub opens in 2026, promising 200 jobs over three years. It will develop new D&D content alongside Invoke Studios.

📢 “We had over $1 billion in games in development as of 2024.” — Dan Ayoub, SVP Digital Games

📢 “The new hub will develop fresh content for Dungeons & Dragons and expand our digital portfolio.” — Hasbro statement

🦊 Kiki: Montréal again. Tax breaks, talent pool, rinse, repeat. It’s smart business, but don’t kid yourself — this isn’t about “creative energy,” it’s about cheaper dev cycles.

🍪 Chip: Wobbling under a giant d20.

5) Rock Band 4 delisted after 10 years, licenses expire

On Oct 5, Rock Band 4 is leaving digital stores due to music licenses expiring. Owned copies remain playable, but DLC disappears as it hits the 10-year mark. Online still works.

📢 “With this milestone comes one big change — the original licenses for the core soundtrack are expiring.” — Kyle Winn, Community Manager

📢 “Anything you’ve purchased will remain in your library.” — Winn

🦊 Kiki: Ten years later and the music bosses aren’t bands — they’re lawyers. If you want the game, buy it now, because once it’s gone, it’s gone. Nostalgia isn’t renewable.

🍪 Chip: Rock shades on, strumming a toy guitar.

Stay / Keep / Remember

Stay loud — unions are rewriting the rules in game studios.
Keep watching where publishers swing the axe when they “reallocate.”
Remember: in games, success doesn’t guarantee survival — but ownership of what you buy, and solidarity with who you work with, still matter.

That’s today’s batch baked and served. If you’ve got a tip, leak, or hot take we should chase, send it here!. If you enjoyed this, share it with a friend who still owns a dusty plastic drum kit.

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