The zombie apocalypse almost claimed its own trainer.
After layoffs and corporate drama put Zombies, Run! on life support earlier this year, co‑creator and lead writer Naomi Alderman has now bought back the entire franchise from former owner OliveX, pulling the app back from a near shutdown and giving its 10 million+ runners a second life.
From Blockchain Darling to Near Shutdown
Zombies, Run! launched in 2012 and carved out a weird, wonderful niche: you run in real life while listening to an episodic audio drama where you’re dodging zombies, collecting supplies and helping rebuild Abel Township.
In 2021, Six to Start (the studio behind the app) was acquired by fitness‑and‑blockchain company OliveX, part of the Animoca Brands ecosystem.
By March 2025, OliveX had laid off almost the entire Zombies, Run! team, and the future of the app looked grim. Season 11 was left hanging mid‑cliffhanger, and fans braced for the game to quietly disappear from app stores.
Alderman Uses a Rare Contract Clause
Here’s where things turned around. Alderman’s original contract included a buyback clause: if the app was going to be sold or shut down, she had the right to purchase it. When OliveX started looking to offload the property, she exercised that option.
Her goal wasn’t to flip it to another corporate owner. Alderman has been explicit: she didn’t want the world she’d been writing for a decade to be strip‑mined for blockchain experiments or churned into “AI slop.”
Under her new independent ownership:
Season 11 will resume production after the long pause.
A new storyline is being developed as a clean on‑ramp for new or lapsed players.
The app’s core proposition—human‑written, voice‑acted stories—stays in human hands.
What Happens to Marvel Move and the Wider Universe
The buyback doesn’t cover everything built under the OliveX umbrella. Alderman’s deal focuses on Zombies, Run! and a small cluster of related properties.
Marvel Move, the superhero‑themed fitness app that spun out of the same team, will continue for a while but is officially on a path to shutdown. Current plans call for the service to sunset in July 2026, when existing subscriptions run out, with the team promising a proper wrap‑up to its storylines before then.
Why This Win Matters Beyond One App
Fitness tech over the last few years has been dominated by consolidation, layoffs and products pivoting toward Web3 or AI‑heavy content. Zombies, Run! going back to its creator flips that script:
It keeps a story‑driven, non‑exploitative fitness app alive in an era of loot boxes and token schemes.
It shows the leverage creators can have when they negotiate ownership and buyback rights up front.
It’s a reminder that in fitness, narrative and community can be just as sticky as leaderboards and streaks.
If you’ve ever run through a dark park listening for zombie moans in your headphones, this is the rare piece of tech‑industry news that feels like fan service: the weird little game that kept you moving is staying weird—and staying alive.
Citations
“Zombies, Run! creator buys back beloved fitness app from brink” – The Tech Buzz
https://www.techbuzz.ai/articles/zombies-run-creator-buys-back-beloved-fitness-app-from-brink The Tech Buzz“Finally some good buyout news: A writer just bought back the game she co‑created from a blockchain company so it ‘doesn’t end up being turned into AI slop’” – PC Gamer
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/finally-some-good-buyout-news-a-writer-just-bought-back-the-game-she-co-created-from-a-blockchain-company-so-it-doesnt-end-up-being-turned-into-ai-slop PC Gamer