Disco Elysium's game director Robert Kurvitz and art director Aleksander Rostov have accused Studio ZA/UM owners of fraud as the studio claims they were fired for misconduct. The game was released in late 2019 to high critical praise and strong sales, but things went sideways after the studio found a set of new owners. It is the latest in a long string of controversies surrounding Disco Elysium and its developers.

When the game was originally released it took the community by storm. Disco Elysium: The Final Cut currently holds a 97 Metacritic score and added a ton of new content for players. The game was also said to have been a big commercial success for the developer, and a sequel was put into early development. Unfortunately, recent events have cast a dark cloud over the game and its developer.

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The trouble with Disco Elysium began when developers Robert Kurvitz, Helen Hindspere, and Aleksander Rostov were fired from the studio seemingly out of nowhere. At the time it wasn't clear why the three were fired. Now Kurvitz and Rostov have shed some light on the matter. In a recent blog post, the two revealed that the studio had a pair of new shareholders named Ilmar Kompus and Tõnis Haavelwho that owned a majority share in the company through their own company, Tütreke OÜ.

Disco Elysium Speak Out Owner Lawsuit

Kurvitz and Rostov had minority stakes in Studio ZA/UM and, at one point, asked to see the company's finances after being steadily cut out of the running of the studio. They were fired from the company soon after requesting the information. They further alleged that Kompus and Haavelwho, through Tütreke OÜ, took control of Studio ZA/UM, by embezzling the studio's money, so they could outright buy it themselves. They further back this theory by revealing that Haavelwho had been convicted of defrauding investors in the past.

Following his departure, Disco Elysium's Robert Kurvitz filed a lawsuit against the studio and its current owners. As one might expect, the current owners of Studio ZA/UM have been making their own allegations against the game's former directors. As Robert Kurvitz and Alksander Rostov were making their allegations the studio went on to say that the two were fired because of misconduct. In a recent interview, Kompus alleged that this involved treating their coworkers and fellow employees poorly.

"They treated their co-workers very badly. Despite talking to them repeatedly, things did not improve. Therefore, the company was forced to fire them. Robert [Kurvitz] is said to have been known for belittling women and co-workers in the past, but this was previously unknown to the company. It would be very short-sighted of a growing international company to tolerate such behaviour."

Ultimately the situation with Disco Elysium, the studio owners, and former developers is messy and will likely get messier as Robert Kurvitz's lawsuit continues to progress. It isn't clear how the lawsuits and departures will affect the development of Disco Elysium 2 or if it will at all. Regardless, the two sides of this lawsuit have begun their PR campaigns against one another, and it will likely not be the last time gamers hear these kinds of allegations before it all wraps up.

Disco Elysium is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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Source: Medium, Estonian Express