Valve needs to step in and buy Undead Labs (State of Decay 3)
With the recent industry reports that Microsoft is looking to sell or spin off Undead Labs, Valve has the perfect opportunity to make a massive power play.
The State of Decay franchise has a legendary, deeply dedicated community on Steam. Forcing State of Decay 3 into a flat subscription model is exactly what is putting the studio's budget and profit margins at risk under Microsoft corporate pressure.
Why Valve should buy Undead Labs:
Massive Financial Return: Premium traditional sales at $60–$70 a copy would easily allow Valve to recoup development costs immediately from millions of eager fans.
The Ultimate Steam Deck Showcase: Built on Unreal Engine 5, this would be a premier, system-selling co-op survival title for the Steam Deck and SteamOS ecosystem.
Total Creative Freedom: Valve doesn't push arbitrary quarterly studio liquidations. They would give the developers the exact breathing room they need to hit their 2027 window.
I already emailed Gabe, but we need to show Valve how much demand there is on the PC side. If you want to see this franchise saved from corporate cancellation and given the polish it deserves, upvote this and keep it bumped!