| ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | Gameplay & Story | DLC & Pre-Order | Review |
| Release Date | |
|---|---|
| May 21, 2026 Steam 2026 PS5 More Details |
|
| Genre | |
| CRPG, Narrative-Driven | |
| Platforms | Price (MSRP) |
  |
TBD |
| Developer | Publisher |
| ZA/UM | ZA/UM |
| Number of Players | Age Rating |
| 1 | ESRB RP |
| Time to Finish | Cross Platform Play |
| TBD | No |
| Official Website | Official Website for ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies |
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Latest News
⚫︎ ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is slated for a launch on May 21, 2026. It will be first available on Steam.
⚫︎ ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies was announced at PlayStation State of Play September 2025. The game is set to release in 2026.
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Overview
Much like Disco Elysium, the game is a narrative-driven espionage RPG where players step into the role of Hershel Wilk, an operative navigating a city steeped in intrigue and betrayal. Presented from a top-down perspective, the experience emphasizes exploration, dialogue, and interactions with a diverse cast of characters, including international financiers, psychic doppelgängers, and rival factions.
The game also introduces new systems that build on ZA/UM’s signature style, such as Dramatic Encounters, Conditioning, and the Exert Option, which expand player choice and shape how each scenario unfolds.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steam |
|||||
| $39.99 | |||||
| PSN |
|||||
| Wishlist Only |
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Gameplay
Zero Parades - For Dead Spies is a narrative-driven CRPG in which players assume the role of Hershel Wilk (codename: CASCADE), an operative assigned to a mysterious espionage mission. Presented from a top-down perspective, the game emphasizes exploration, dialogue, and investigative play as you hunt for secrets across a city shaped by intrigue and betrayal.
Gameplay centers on conversation and choice. Players interact with informants, loyalists, and a wide range of characters. Decisions matter, and outcomes are often resolved by dice rolls and RNG. The game features multiple skill checks and a customizable set of abilities, including new options not present in Disco Elysium.
Key systems introduced in the title include:
⚫︎ Dramatic Encounters: Moments where time pauses and players must resolve high-stakes situations through a sequence of dice-based choices. For example, if you are being tailed, you might try to blend into a crowd or confront the pursuer. Both options are valid, but each carries distinct consequences.
⚫︎ Failing Forward and Exert Option: Failing Forward ensures unsuccessful rolls or poor choices still lead to meaningful, story-driven outcomes. The Exert Option allows players to roll a third die and keep the best two results while discarding the lowest, at a minor cost.
⚫︎ Conditioning: A streamlined alternative to the Thought Cabinet, Conditioning lets players reinforce traits that modify skills and perspectives. These traits can provide both benefits and drawbacks, allowing you to shape Hershel’s progression by balancing positive and negative effects.
The game also retains the ability to pause time for tactical reflection, and it preserves a strong focus on narrative agency, combining ZA/UM’s signature conversational depth with new mechanics that expand player choice and consequence.
