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ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Game Cover
83%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, gameplay
Most mentioned negative aspects:stability, monetization
83% User Score Based on 482 reviews

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ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Game Cover

About ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is a single player open world role playing game with thriller and comedy themes. It was developed by ZA/UM and was released on May 21, 2026. It received positive reviews from players.

Brilliant, burnt-out, possibly cursed – you play as operant Hershel Wilk, alias CASCADE. Five years ago you led your team into the abyss and have been haunted by your failures ever since. Now you've been recalled for a mysterious assignment that may give you a chance to prove yourself again. Fulfil the demands of your assignment by hunting down secrets hidden within the architecture of both the ci…

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ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies screenshot
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Reviews

83%Audience ScoreBased on 482 reviews
story39 positive mentions
stability18 negative mentions
  • Intriguing and well-written story with multiple outcomes and compelling characters.
  • Impressive art direction, atmospheric soundtrack, and detailed world-building.
  • Gameplay improvements over Disco Elysium, including engaging skill systems and meaningful player choices.
  • Technical issues such as missing or inconsistent voice acting, audio-text mismatches, and bugs affecting immersion.
  • The narrator's voice acting was consistently criticized as irritating or grating by some players.
  • Punishing mechanics like permanent skill point loss from failure can frustrate players and impede progress.

  • story

    129 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    30% positive mentions, 68% neutral mentions, 2% negative mentions

    The story of Zero Parades is generally praised for its intriguing espionage thriller plot, deep writing, and compelling characters, often compared favorably to Disco Elysium but with a more serious and complex tone. While some find it slow-paced, disjointed, or occasionally bogged down by irrelevant side quests and bugs, many appreciate its branching choices, surprising twists, and rich world-building, making it engaging for fans of narrative-driven RPGs despite occasional shortcomings in urgency and emotional connection.

    • “Voice acting is great (although missing for some characters, or sometimes bugs out), the story is great, very deep, with multiple possible outcomes.”
    • “The story is full of surprising twists and turns and memorable characters.”
    • “Zero Parades' story, as far as video game writing goes, is top tier.”
    • “It felt like someone vaguely describing a spy thriller while interrupting themselves constantly to poorly interject random sci-fi elements and modern-day politics from that story they're writing or saw once.”
    • “But story-wise, and especially when compared to Disco Elysium, the plotline feels very disjointed; it tries to be a cyberpunk-esque story and a spy thriller and just can't pull any of it off.”
    • “There is a lot of choices that rely on insane foreknowledge to make which is maddening. I made all the completely correct decisions with the information I had present only to find out that those were the completely wrong decisions later because apparently it's totally satisfying to put in a bunch of twists that the player will have absolutely no reason to pick up on in advance, not to mention all the random dead threads you can follow. It's insane; if you're going to throw major government conspiracies at me having secret bases on the dark side of the moon etc., maybe do something with that plot line instead of just going, 'yeah, by the way, this is real in this world,' and just dropping it entirely from the game.”

  • gameplay

    97 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    22% positive mentions, 75% neutral mentions, 3% negative mentions

    The gameplay is widely regarded as a strong evolution of Disco Elysium’s mechanics, introducing risk-reward systems like stress bars and thought conditioning that add meaningful depth and player choice. While some find new mechanics engaging and well-integrated, others criticize elements like permanent skill loss and anxiety bars as frustrating or underutilized. Overall, the gameplay balances tight writing, roleplay, and novel mechanics to create a challenging and immersive CRPG experience.

    • “Mechanically improved on everything from Disco Elysium, and has an equally interesting story.”
    • “At the same time, they innovated the gameplay formula enough to feel fresh, but not to the point of losing the essence that made Disco Elysium great as a pioneer of a new subgenre.”
    • “This allows players to opt to roll three dice instead of two, taking the highest two results to pass difficult checks at the risk of spiking their pressure, creating a high-stakes risk-reward loop that gives every major choice genuine mechanical weight.”
    • “There is a mechanic where skills are permanently lowered just from picking normal dialogue options.”
    • “I think what really bugs me about this game, and perhaps the whole genre that DE spawned, is that the gameplay simply involves running around and talking to absolutely everyone in the hope of getting even the tiniest scrap of information, only to get roadblocked by completely random skill checks.”
    • “Some mechanics / areas of the game are poorly explained and you'll need to take a guess to what actually happens.”

  • music

    32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    28% positive mentions, 63% neutral mentions, 9% negative mentions

    Reviews of the game's music are mixed, with some praising its subtle ambient soundtrack and moments of synth and scoring it as memorable and fitting the atmosphere. However, many users find the music lacking in presence, memorable themes, or involvement, describing it as slow, minimal, or vapid compared to similar titles. Overall, while the music supports the mood, it often fails to stand out or resonate strongly with players.

    • “Typography is heaven-sent and the music is stunning.”
    • “Outside of that: the story is intriguing, the lore is interesting, the music is a straight 10/10, and the art direction is very comfortably sitting in that Disco Elysium-tier zone.”
    • “The soundtrack is also just as phenomenal btw!”
    • “My biggest gripe is that there is pretty much no music.”
    • “There is no music worth remembering about in this game.”
    • “On the downside, the game's soundtrack consists primarily of slow and subtly changing ambience.”

  • graphics

    31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    39% positive mentions, 51% neutral mentions, 10% negative mentions

    The game's graphics feature a striking, oil-painted art style reminiscent of Disco Elysium, praised for its detailed, gritty, and atmospheric visuals that enhance the dark, serious tone. While some users note the high hardware demands and debate the authenticity compared to the original inspiration, the overall aesthetic is widely appreciated for being ambitious, captivating, and visually rich.

    • “The oil-painted aesthetic returns with sharper environmental detail and richer lighting, giving Portofiro a permanently rain-soaked, exhausted beauty.”
    • “The artwork is even better than Disco Elysium and is to die for, at least in my opinion.”
    • “Visuals are gorgeously grim and gritty.”
    • “My computer overheated so fast and the graphics are terrible.”
    • “It's an interesting case study in how you can copy the aesthetics of a game but somehow completely miss its soul.”
    • “Even the game's art style looks like an attempt to mimic Rostov's iconic Elysium style by using AI.”

  • humor

    30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's humor is praised for its witty, clever writing that balances irony, sincerity, and quirky charm, creating moments that are both funny and emotionally impactful. While some find the humor more subdued and less memorable compared to its predecessor, others appreciate its blend of absurdity, political commentary, and genuine laughs. Overall, the humor enhances the narrative and character interactions, though its tone is more serious and less overtly comedic than similar titles.

    • “Writing is excellent, witty, and sharp with a good dose of humor attached.”
    • “The game is deeply funny and humanizing around its most serious moments and even as it is highly critical of the neoliberal order.”
    • “The tone is a bit more serious than DE but that fits the setting and occupation of the main character, but there are still humorous bits too.”

  • stability

    18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game launched with significant stability issues, including numerous bugs such as missing voice lines, UI glitches, control problems, and occasional soft-locks that hinder casual play. While patches are expected to address some of these problems, the prevalence of these technical flaws at release led to a frustrating and unfinished experience for many players.

    • “The game is rather buggy in ways that punish casual play and save scumming; there are about 30% missing voicelines and random soft-locks that interrupt gameplay.”
    • “For a game with so few moving parts and a long development cycle, it is mind boggling how buggy it is, including missing voicelines and altered dialogue that have persisted since the demo.”
    • “There are constant UI and audio glitches where dialogue lines regularly fail to trigger, and voice acting often plays over unrelated text boxes, severely impacting the experience.”

  • atmosphere

    11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    36% positive mentions, 37% neutral mentions, 27% negative mentions

    The atmosphere is consistently praised for its strong visual style, immersive and intriguing setting, and well-suited voice acting, creating a gripping and distinctive experience. While some note occasional shortcomings in music or originality, overall the game effectively captures a gloomy, solidly written spy thriller ambiance with deep character presence and a compelling mood reminiscent of Disco Elysium.

    • “Fantastic atmosphere and immersion with gripping storytelling where choices matter.”
    • “The writing is solid, the atmosphere is gloomy and intriguing, and the characters are obviously more than caricatures.”
    • “It was a bit lacking in music and atmosphere overall, but the game itself is quite decent.”
    • “Zero Parade occasionally struggles to step out from Disco Elysium's influence, but its exceptional writing, distinct yet familiar atmosphere, and striking visual direction prevent it from being a hollow copy.”
    • “A solid spy thriller, decent atmosphere + finally a game where you play as the good guys (the communists).”

  • emotional

    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game evokes a mixed emotional response, with some players feeling invested and moved by its provocative themes and narrative depth, especially from act 2 onward, while others found the ending unsatisfying or less emotionally compelling compared to similar titles. It offers strong philosophical and emotional content, though it may not reach the emotional impact of its predecessor. Certain moments and characters still manage to deliver poignant and heartbreaking experiences.

    • “In act 2, the game seems to finally get its act together and remember that there needs to be some level of serious investment and emotional gravitas underpinning all the rest of it.”
    • “The narrative writing is excellent, with all of the familiar philosophical and emotional themes that fans of the developer's existing work will enjoy, and the gameplay mechanics have new and interesting flourishes that will take you by surprise and hopefully delight.”
    • “The central character isn't quite as emotionally captivating as Disco's amnesiac detective, but the plot moves along a lot better, and it establishes the stakes more firmly.”

  • optimization

    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 12% neutral mentions, 38% negative mentions

    Optimization is generally strong, with smooth performance and good frame rates, even on the Steam Deck, though some users report occasional stuttering and missing voice lines that impact polish. Despite these minor issues, the game delivers a well-optimized and immersive experience overall.

    • “Performance has been just about perfect.”
    • “The game runs fantastic, the performance isn't bad at all.”
    • “Also the second time I booted up the game it had insane stuttering issues.”
    • “I’ve been playing on the Steam Deck, and while the actual performance and frame rate feel smooth, the entire experience is bogged down by this lack of polish.”
    • “Bit of a stuttering issue and some voice lines seem to be missing in random places.”

  • monetization

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game is praised for not being a cash grab and feels like a genuine labor of love, though there is criticism of the publisher's misleading advertising tactics that exploit the original creators' reputation. Overall, the monetization approach is seen as fair, but the marketing strategy is contentious.

    • “Great job on being manipulated into being free advertisement, game is awesome.”
    • “All I know is that the company is advertising it as being 'from the creators of Disco Elysium'.”
    • “The publishing team at ZA/UM are really screwing over the devs by constantly pushing a very false narrative/advertisement.”

  • replayability

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, -67% neutral mentions, 67% negative mentions

    The game emphasizes replayability through key plot turning points and multiple quest paths centered on espionage and information extraction. Its meta commentary on bootlegs and knockoffs further enhances its thematic depth and encourages repeated playthroughs.

    • “A few key plot turning points provide better replayability.”
    • “In a hilarious display of meta commentary, the developers made the central theme of the game a discussion revolving around bootlegs, knockoffs, and replayability.”
    • “Quests are highly intuitive, relying on espionage and information extraction, and they offer multiple paths to completion that hint at great replayability.”
    • “+ a few key plot turning points for better replayability”
    • “In a hilarious display of meta commentary, the devs made the central theme of the game to be a discussion revolving around bootlegs, knockoffs, and replayability.”

  • character development

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users praise the character development, highlighting the strong contributions of the writers, level designers, and character designers, who collectively deliver a well-crafted and commendable experience.

  • grinding

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Users find the grinding aspect tedious and frustrating, particularly due to the manual loading after each text box option. This mechanic disrupts gameplay flow and reduces the desire to continue playing, leading to extended breaks and decreased engagement.

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Play Times

8h Median play time
7h Average play time
6-10h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 4 analyzed playthroughs
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Game News

ZA/UM issues layoffs following Zero Parades commercial failure

July 19 on smashjump.com

ZA/UM are set for more layoffs only two months after launching Zero Parades: For Dead Spies

July 18 on rockpapershotgun.com

Controversy-laden Disco Elysium and Zero Parades studio ZA/UM to lay off large chunk of staff once more

July 18 on eurogamer.net

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Studio Issues Redundancy and At-Risk Notices for Up to 32 Employees

July 18 on gamingbolt.com

2 months after releasing Zero Parades, Studio ZA/UM is laying off employees: 'Its commercial performance has not enabled us to sustain a studio of our current size'

July 17 on pcgamer.com

Zero Parades being an easier RPG than Disco Elysium makes perfect sense – and makes it more fun

May 29 on gamesradar.com

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Interview – Disco Elysium Roots, Spy Story RPG, New Gameplay Systems, And More

May 22 on gamingbolt.com

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Released

May 21 on bluesnews.com
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Frequently Asked Questions

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is a open world role playing game with thriller and comedy themes. Common tags for ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies include indie, isometric, crpg, dark comedy, female protagonist and others.

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is available on PC, Phone, Steam Deck, Windows and others.

On average players spend around 7 hours playing ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies.

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies was released on May 21, 2026.

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies was developed by ZA/UM.

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies has received positive reviews from players. Most players liked ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies for its story but disliked it for its stability.

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is a single player game.