ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies Reviews
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is another proof of the talent and capability of ZA/UM studio, just as it previously presented to us Disco Elysium. This time, it presented to us a game characterized by a mysterious and exciting story, influential and good characters, to be completed with a narrative style perfectly suited to the game's story, in addition to the role-playing systems that the studio offers in new and distinctive ways. And just where the positive points appear, the negative points appeared as well; as the game offers a small world that does not encourage exploration, complexity of missions through waiting and not providing clear clues, and a drop in the story's pacing in some parts of the missions.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
They say that WWI exotic dancer and spy Mata Hari blew a kiss to her firing squad at her execution. That defiant energy runs through Zero Parades: For Dead Spies. Protagonist Hershel Wilk knows she is not up to the task, yet a sense of remorse pushes her forward. What she finds is a web of deceit that it alone warrants the price of entry. This is no Disco Elysium, but a thrilling beast of its own.
Despite a beautiful world and some clever mechanical flourishes, Zero Parades doesn't commit to its espionage concept enough to be convincing.
The second game from Disco Elysium studio ZA/UM, this text-heavy, dice-driven RPG is an exquisitely constructed take on consumerism, empire, nostalgia and beyond.
All in all, Zero Parades has that ever-elusive quality of convincing you to keep playing: to find out what happens next, to unravel the narrative, to keep experiencing Portofiro.
As a successor to Disco Elysium, ZA/UM's spy-fi RPG is a little too fearful to roll the dice on something new. But if the systems and themes are a little too familiar in Zero Parades: For Dead Spies, that does mean some of the old charm persists – and if you can look past the odd irritation, you'll find an NPC crew worth getting to know in Portofiro.
Zero Parades knows that those choices aren’t always as cut and dry as they appear. When there’s always a gun aimed at your back, even the most disciplined spy is bound to crack eventually. Misinterpret a cipher and “betrayal” quickly becomes “survival.” They have the same number of letters, after all.
It's these systemic enhancements that most notably separate Zero Parades from Disco Elysium. It struggles in other areas, often feeling like a pale imitation of the studio's predecessor--dangerous territory when the likelihood of reaching the same heights is marginal at best.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is weird, beautiful, and dense with characters that I wanted to understand. It plays with its choices and narrative threads with confidence, allowing foundational elements to rot and die in service of the paths the player is willing to take.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies brings a new take from studio ZA/UM on the narrative RPG format, now digging into espionage drama.
Overall, ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is an exciting espionage thriller that succeeds far more than it stumbles.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is not an easy game, and within that difficulty it explores interesting themes related to media, ideas, curiosity, and the danger of drive. It digs deep to find its own identity while also being built on the foundation of previous work from developer ZA/UM, and does so successfully.
For Dead Spies adopts the classic structure of narrative adventure games—multiple dialogue options, locations to visit, and items to retrieve—and grafts it onto a surprisingly deep RPG system, featuring psychological stats, customizable builds, perks, and dice rolls that can radically alter the course of events.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The game takes its time to reveal itself to be an intelligent and nuanced narrative RPG.
Zero Parades isn't Disco Elysium 2, nor does it try to be. It does, however, demonstrate that, even after the rift that engulfed ZA/UM, there's still someone within the studio capable of writing profoundly strange and tremendously fascinating games, capable of transforming Portofiro into one of the most artistically compelling landscapes seen in recent years. Whether or not to give it a chance, however, is a roll of the dice left entirely up to the players.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While Zero Parades: For Dead Spies does feel like a spiritual sequel to Disco Elysium, its narrator doesn't quite have the same spark as its predecessor. Given that she whispers in your ear for the entire game, her rough-and-ready accent quickly becomes droning, with skill voices melding into one instead of being unique, exciting personalities. Thankfully, both the dramatic encounters and Exert systems make up for some of the game's less interesting moments, breaking up the text's monotony while raising the stakes. Zero Parades, in many ways, feels even more TTRPG than Disco Elysium, and in my book, that's a win.
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is tense espionage, political dread and arcane philosophy wrapped up in a beautifully crafted CRPG package. The freedom to develop your spy in whatever faculty and fashion you wish is fun to engage with, and the narrative had me hooked from the moment I stepped foot onto the scene.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is an engrossing tale of espionage intrigue with superb writing and roleplaying mechanics, all wrapped up in a compelling reflection on the role of media in government and society at large.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is simultaneously too beholden to the structure and design established by Disco Elysium, yet fails to capture the same sense of immersion and authentic representation of humanity that made its predecessor so special.
ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies is a fantastic RPG with great writing, a phenomenal cast of characters, and an interesting setting.