With the endlessly unfolding drama around the Disco Elysium creative team a backdrop, ZA/UM has officially unveiled its next major RPG project.
Previously codenamed C4, Zero Parades looks to very much be a spiritual successor to the studio’s first game, though it’s far too early to say how exactly that’s going to turn out with the amount of behind-the-scenes changes that have been going on.
In fact, as Gamescom presenter Geoff Keighley put it during the announcement, ZA/UM have been through a “host of changes” and the new game is made by those “who now make up the studio.”
The setting and story
Despite the similarity in artstyle and genre, Zero Parades is set in its own universe, distinct from Disco Elysium. It does, however, look as though it will share in some of the same general themes and narrative focuses, from an examination of mental health to a certain level of importance placed on the role of politics.
The Steam page of Zero Parades describes it as “a story-rich espionage RPG. You’re a brilliant but tormented operant on a desperate assignment. Pick up the pieces of your broken network, untangle a bloody web of intrigue at the End of History, and prove yourself on the big stage or blow it all up – again.”
The accompanying description of the player character as “brilliant, burnt-out and possibly cursed” sounds incredibly similar to Disco Elysium’s protagonist, as does the suggestion of the setting being its own character to explore.
What’s known about the gameplay mechanics?
Described by ZA/UM as a “story rich espionage RPG” with the CRPG tag on Steam, audiences can see a glimpse of what looks like gameplay in the trailer – and it looks much like what you’d expect from the Disco Elysium studio. A hands-on report from PC Gamer in March 2025 confirmed that the gameplay is very similar to that of its predecessor, complete with a system that works very similarly to the Thought Cabinet mechanic from Disco Elysium.
Who’s involved?
Naturally, discussion is going to turn to which of those original team members are still involved. The primary Disco Elysium creatives of Robert Kurvitz, Helen Hindpere and Aleksander Rostov aren’t involved with the a long and bitter saga at the studio, Martin Luiga, Argo Tuulik and Olga Moskvina all worked on Disco Elysium in some capacity and have all since left ZA/UM to work on various new projects. This leaves it unclear who exactly is left, but Zero Parades is still in very early development, meaning there’s plenty of time for these details to be revealed.
