State of Decay 3 studio founder says he wanted it to be the "ultimate fulfillment of the survival fantasy"

State of Decay 3
(Image credit: Undead Labs)

Jeff Strain has discussed the vision he had for State of Decay 3 before his departure from the series.

Earlier today, in response to questions put to him by Kotaku, Jeff Strain has posted his answers about his time at the studio and his departure from it. 

One question Strain was asked was what he envisioned for the third instalment in the zombie survival game. The series founder expressed the lofty ambition he had for the title, saying that he expected it to be the “ultimate fulfilment of survival fantasy we pioneered with State of Decay”. 

“It’s a game of interacting simulated systems, and the deeper the simulation, the richer the emergent mechanics and sense of agency,” he added.

Strain also addressed how he felt the game was progressing up until his departure from Undead Labs, explaining that he got to work on the game in the more straightforward conceptual stage rather than the difficult phase of implementing those ideas.

“Well, like many projects making the difficult transition to triple-A, there were a ton of unknowns, and worse: unknown unknowns. I got to work on SoD3 when it was easy — what I call the ‘You know what would be cool’ phase of development. The hard work of turning ‘You know what would be cool?’ into an actual game happened after I left,” said Strain.

No release date has yet been set for State of Decay 3.

While you wait for State of Decay’s third serving of zombie action, check out our pick of the 10 best zombie games that will take a bite out of you. If you need some advice when it comes to surviving the video game zombie apocalypse, check out our State of Decay 2 tips.

Freelance Writer

Originally from Ireland, I moved to the UK in 2014 to pursue a Games Journalism and PR degree at Staffordshire University. Following that, I've freelanced for GamesMaster, Games TM, Official PlayStation Magazine and, more recently, Play and Games Radar. My love of gaming sprang from successfully defeating that first Goomba in Super Mario Bros on the NES. These days, PlayStation is my jam. When not gaming or writing, I can usually be found scouring the internet for anything Tomb Raider related to add to my out of control memorabilia collection.

Read more
Killing Floor 3 screenshots of a member of NIghtfall wearing a gas mask next to images of burning foes that surround the Big in 2025 logo
Killing Floor 3 is bringing us gloriously gory co-op FPS action in 2025, and Tripwire says it's "at its best when you are just barely surviving"
Dying Light: The Beast screenshot of protagonist Castor Wood fighting a zombie with a blade and torchlight next to the big in 2025 logo
Dying Light: The Beast is blending atmospheric horror with over the top co-op absurdity in 2025: "It's almost unachievable to keep the horror vibe and still have four players when one is teabagging a zombie"
Dying Light 10 year anniversary
Celebrating 10 years of Dying Light's horror legacy: "We were doubting ourselves a little, and then the players stepped in"
Vampire Survivors
Vampire Survivors dev teases "one more original expansion," online co-op, and what sounds like a whole new game in the studio's "biggest, chaotic-est, surprising-est" year yet
A player being pursued by a horde of zombies in PC survival game Project Zomboid
Introducing my friends to Project Zomboid ended in disaster, but it's given me a newfound appreciation for the best zombie survival sim around
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
Latest in RPG
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
Fallout 76's art director "had to fight really hard" so Bethesda would make the MMO's map bigger than Skyrim's
A Dragon Age character stares out against a blue background.
BioWare makes a return to Dragon Age: The Veilguard with a surprise PC update, months after layoffs and a seemingly final patch
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
"I believe in experiencing life and art through human expression, not software": Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor calls for proper AI regulation
Yasuke riding through a village looking for Knowledge in Assassin's Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows' prologue is the most gripping in franchise history, but I'm fixated on the tiny details
Naoe perched in front of a castle in Assassin's Creed Shadows
I've spent 20 hours in Assassin's Creed Shadows chasing drip and decor, and it's proving to be my biggest source of motivation in the RPG
Cabernet screenshot showing vampire protagonist Liza sucking someone's blood
Cabernet is the kind of vampire RPG I've been looking for since Masquerade Bloodlines, and I'm already plotting my next run 6 hours in
Latest in News
Hollow Knight
Hollow Knight: Silksong gets unprecedented second update in 2 weeks, with a Steam page tweak pointing to a 2025 release
World of Warcraft
My newest MMO hero is World of Warcraft Priest 'Chimneytime,' who got an official "warning" from Blizzard for making too many people get trapped inside chimneys
One Piece
One Piece co-showrunner announces he's stepping away from the "life changing journey" of working on the Netflix show to "focus on myself and my mental health"
Peacemaker
Peacemaker season 2 star says the show feels like the DCU's "cool kid" as it's one of James Gunn's "first babies": "I'm excited to see how that expands and grows"
John Boyega in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
John Boyega was tired of "doing a lot of falling" in the Star Wars sequels, so asked director J.J. Abrams for a "level of growth" between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker
Silent Hill f screenshot showing the protagonist
Silent Hill f hasn't actually been banned in Australia, but it's not out of the woods yet