ZA/UM Unveils Zero Parades, a Surreal Spy Thriller CRPG

ZA/UM, the studio best known for Disco Elysium, has revealed its next project: Zero Parades — a dark, surreal spy thriller CRPG. Though the studio has changed since its breakout hit, Zero Parades promises the same narrative richness and experimental storytelling that put ZA/UM on the map.

🎭 A Broken Spy in a Broken World

Players step into the role of Hershel Wilk, alias CASCADE — a once-brilliant operative haunted by past failures. Seeking redemption, Hershel is drawn into a dangerous three-way power struggle over a mysterious city, clashing with:

• ruthless international bankers,
• foreign techno-fascists,
• psychic doppelgängers,
• and other strange, unsettling foes.

The twist? You will fail. But failure isn’t the end — it’s the beginning of a second chance to set things right.

✨ Key Features

• Become an Anti-Icon → Play as Hershel: magnetic, relentless, but cursed. Every move leaves destruction in its wake, endangering both allies and enemies alike.
• Espionage Reinvented → Navigate a surreal world of bootleg mind-erasure, failed space programs, and state-sponsored pop stars. Forget the glamour of classic spy fiction — this is espionage without parades, and without happy endings.
• Failing Forward → In Zero Parades, failure isn’t just possible — it’s inevitable. Each misstep opens new narrative pathways that success would never reveal.
• Story-Rich Espionage RPG → From the creators of Disco Elysium, blending the psychological weight of a spy novel with surrealism, philosophical undertones, and deeply flawed characters.
• A Question of Identity → Who are you when no one is watching? In Zero Parades, your answer reshapes not just your mission but your very sense of self. To survive, you may have to surrender pieces of your identity — and risk losing your mind in the process.

🌀 Dark, strange, and deeply human, Zero Parades reimagines the spy genre as something far more personal — a journey through failure, identity, and the cost of redemption.