Undead Labs is looking to be known for much more than zombies. State of Decay 3 may mark this turning point, with a'much greater level of ambition.'

Four years ago, a teaser trailer showed a survivor's journey in a post-apocalyptic frozen world. We didn't see any zombies in the trailer, except for an undead deer. This, it turns out is in line with Undead Labs new creative direction.

Undead Labs explained in a dev diary why the studio underwent a recent rebranding. Wayne Laybourn says that the previous Undead Labs' logos were directly linked to making a game about zombies. "But I think that we wanted something bigger with more room to explore."

Studio head Philip Holt asks, "What does the word 'undead" mean and what we want it to be?" "How do we make it more than just a zombie proxy?" asks studio head Philip Holt.

The old logo, with the zombie hands reaching for the dirt, has been replaced by a new logo that features shapes like a skull, key, and hourglass, along with the new slogan, "We brave darkness to discover our Light." We are Undead. The developers are trying to make the undead more metaphorical instead of literal, in order to allow the studio to become known for more than zombie games.

Vicki Ebberts, studio chief of staff, says that a big part of the games is the story the players tell themselves. "I feel that a little mystery in our branding allows us to go in any direction we choose."

State of Decay 3 looks to be the beginning of the change that Undead Labs is hoping to see. There will still be plenty zombies, but it's not impossible to include a greater emphasis on humanity and morality. It's not a stretch to imagine the last survivors battling through dark times in order to find the light. This is something that developers mention throughout the dev journal.

Undead Labs now has the resources and tools necessary to explore this type of complex theme. Holt says that State of Decay was created when the company had only 20 employees. "State of Decay 2, shipped with a company of 60-65 people--I mean, these were small teams. We are now at least twice as big. We're now part of one of largest content producing organisations in the World and on our way to completing State of Decay 3 - with a much higher level of ambition and backing behind us.
I'm looking forward to seeing how Undead Labs puts a new spin on the classic series of zombie games. And honestly, based on what I've seen of State of Decay 3 in the various trailers I've watched, it seems like there's a real scope to focus more on a meaningful story than simply surviving the zombie-apocalypse.