Disco Elysium Studio ZA/UM Reveals “Style-Defining” RPG Mission C4

ZA/UM, the studio accountable for 2019’s cult basic RPG Disco Elysium (though it is honest to say there’s somewhat extra to it than that), has revealed its new sport Mission C4.

The studio describes the sport as “a mind-warping story of espionage and team-building” which takes place in an “unique but achingly acquainted setting”, which could counsel the setting will bear some similarities to Disco Elysium’s Revachol.

Mission C4’s debut trailer is characteristically imprecise and indirect, with a voiceover intoning imprecise strains like “my thoughts is consuming itself” and “obliteration wears a rented go well with” with a withering English twang. In equity, this can be a teaser trailer (and one made by ZA/UM, no much less), so we in all probability should not count on simple.

The opening phrases of the trailer confidently learn “WE ARE ZA/UM” and “WE BROUGHT YOU Disco Elysium”, however that is arguably solely true as much as a sure level.

Again in 2022, Disco Elysium lead designer Robert Kurvitz, together with artwork director Aleksander Rostov and author Helen Hindpere, confirmed that they had been now not part of ZA/UM after it was reported that the three had been quietly faraway from the studio.

What adopted is a prolonged, winding story of authorized disputes and bitter recriminations, so ZA/UM saying that it is the studio accountable for Disco Elysium feels just a bit bit audacious on condition that lots of that sport’s key inventive personnel are now not there.

Moreover, in early 2024, ZA/UM was hit by layoffs, with the studio additionally canceling one in every of its in-development sport tasks (which was reportedly a standalone Disco Elysium growth).

Since then, a variety of ex-Disco Elysium builders have based their very own studios and introduced their very own video games, lots of which bear no less than superficial similarities to the Disco Elysium formulation.

In fact, it stays to be seen whether or not Mission C4 will itself be much like Disco Elysium, however since ZA/UM reminds us of that sport’s existence within the first few seconds of the trailer (and describes C4 as “the following genre-defining RPG” from the studio), it is a secure wager it’s going to.

We’ll have to attend and see what’s in retailer for us in the case of Mission C4. Keep tuned for extra.