Zero Parades: For Dead Spies, the next game from Disco Elysium studio ZA/UM, will launch in 2026. Its release window was announced during the latest State of Play event, which also saw ZA/UM premiere the first Zero Parades gameplay trailer.
Zero Parades was originally announced at Gamescom in late August 2025. Its first trailer was largely focused on teasing the game’s setting and mood, establishing it as a paranoid spy trailer with Disco Elysium vibes, but while only showing a few seconds’ worth of gameplay.
Zero Parades Reveals Gameplay and Full Name
A month later, ZA/UM joined the lineup of the September 25 State of Play event with a new Zero Parades trailer, which offered a longer look at its gameplay, running for nearly a minute and a half. It also revealed the game’s full name: Zero Parades: For Dead Spies. Being of the gameplay variety, the promo video offers plenty of looks at the game’s protagonist, Hershel Wilk, described as a capable but unlucky operator—or “operant,” to use the game’s jargon—navigating betrayals and dice-checked decisions in a world that sets her up for failure.
Zero Parades Locks Down a 2026 Release Window
The State of Play trailer ended with a reveal of the game’s release window: 2026. While it was announced at a Sony event, Zero Parades has already been announced for PC, in addition to the PlayStation 5. No other platforms have yet been confirmed by ZA/UM. The lack of a more precise release window, combined with the fact 2026 is nearly here, suggests Zero Parades is more likely to launch in the second half of next year rather than the first, assuming no delays take place.
In terms of new gameplay features, the developer highlighted Dramatic Encounters—segments where time slows down and the protagonist threads a series of choices whose outcomes hinge on dice rolls—as one way in which Zero Parades expands on Disco Elysium‘s dialogue-heavy formula. There’s also a new Exert button that lets players perform dice rolls with an advantage, adding a third die and keeping the best two. In a prepared statement, ZA/UM Marketing Director Sven Paluch said this luxury requires “a small sacrifice,” but without elaborating on the matter, merely promising more details will arrive in due time.
Following the success of Disco Elysium, ZA/UM experienced significant turmoil, in which former game director Robert Kurvitz and art director Aleksander Rostov left the company. They have alleged a fraudulent takeover and misuse of €4.8 million tied to majority control—claims the studio rejects, saying the pair were fired for misconduct. The controversy resulted in Disco Elysium creators suing ZA/UM in Estonia. Against that backdrop, Zero Parades: For Dead Spies may draw mixed reactions from Disco Elysium fans, because despite looking like a successor to the beloved RPG, there’s a persistent perception among parts of the community that the studio wronged people central to the first game’s success.