Underground Development

Underground Development, Ltd.

Formerly	Z-Axis, Ltd. (1994–2008)
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Video games
Founded	1994; 31 years ago (1994) in San Mateo, California, U.S.
Founder	David Luntz
Defunct	February 12, 2010 (2010-02-12)
Fate	Dissolved
Headquarters	Foster City, California , U.S.
Number of employees	<45 (2008)
Parent	Activision (2002–2010)

Underground Development, Ltd. (formerly Z-Axis, Ltd.) was an American video game developer based in Foster City, California. It was founded in 1994 by David Luntz and sold to Activision in May 2002. Following a rebranding to Underground Development in February 2008, the company was closed in February 2010.

History

Z-Axis was founded by David Luntz in 1994,^[1] originally located in San Mateo, California.^[2] On May 22, 2002, Activision announced that they had acquired Z-Axis in exchange for a payment of US$20.5 million in cash and stock, and up to 93,446 additional shares in Activision linked to the studio's performance.^[3][4] At the time, the studio was located in Hayward, California.^[3] In February 2008, Z-Axis was rebranded as Underground Development.^[5][6]

Activision reported in April 2008 that they were closing Underground Development, which had the time had under 45 employees in a Foster City, California office, at the end of the coming May.^[7][8][9] The studio was fully closed on February 12, 2010.^[10][11]

Games developed as Z-Axis

Year	Title	Platform(s)
1996	Madden NFL '96	Sega Genesis
1998	Fox Sports College Hoops '99	Nintendo 64
1999	Alexi Lalas International Soccer	PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Color
	Space Invaders	PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo 64
	Thrasher Presents Skate and Destroy	PlayStation
2000	Freestyle Motocross: McGrath vs Pastrana	PlayStation
	Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX	PlayStation, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows
2001	Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX: Maximum Remix	PlayStation
	Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX 2	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Xbox
2002	Aggressive Inline	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Xbox
	BMX XXX	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox
2006	X-Men: The Official Game	PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360
Cancelled	Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX 3[12]	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox
	Iron Man[13]	PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox

Games developed as Underground Development

Year	Title	Platform(s)
2009	Guitar Hero: Van Halen	PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360
Cancelled	Call of Duty: Devil's Brigade[14]	Xbox 360

References

1. Nutt, Christian (January 4, 2008). "Q&A: Nunchuck Games' Luntz On Testing His Ninja Reflex". gamasutra.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2012. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
2. IGN Staff (February 18, 1998). "Z-Axis Dunks High". ign.com. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
3. "Activision Acquires Dave Mirra Developer, Z-Axis". gamasutra.com. May 22, 2002. Archived from the original on August 11, 2018. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
4. "Activision goes straight up". eurogamer.net. June 3, 2002. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
5. "Z-Axis renamed to Underground Development - VG247". vg247.com. February 14, 2008. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
6. "Activision rebrands one of its internal studios". mcvuk.com. February 18, 2008. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
7. "Activision confirms Underground closure". gamesindustry.biz. April 19, 2008. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
8. "Activision closing Underground Developments?". mcvuk.com. April 18, 2008. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
9. "Activision closes Underground Development studio". engadget.com. April 21, 2008. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
10. Plunkett, Luke (February 12, 2010). "Activision Shutters Guitar Hero Creators, GH: Van Halen Developers [Update]". kotaku.com. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
11. "Activision shuts down RedOctane, Underground Development". engadget.com. February 13, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
12. "Activision Nabs Z-Axis - News". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved January 1, 2025.
13. Perry, Douglass C. (November 21, 2003). "Z-Axis Hiring for Iron Man, X-Men". IGN. Retrieved January 1, 2025.
14. "What Was Call of Duty: Devil's Brigade?". May 14, 2010.