
USSR, 1986. A girl goes missing in the closed city of Vorkuta-5, yet not a soul seems to be concerned. Uncover the mystery behind her disappearance and transmit your signal to the universe.
Revenue comes from in-game items and microtransactions, which our price-based model doesn't estimate. The player count below is how many people own it, not what they spent.
About
USSR, 1986. When Ira Grachevskaya goes missing in the closed city of Vorkuta-5, not a soul seems to be concerned – except for the quiet outcast Asya Shubina, that is. Uncover the mystery behind Ira’s disappearance, transmit your radio signal to the universe and learn why a bird flies past the window.
Meet the cast.

A problem child and a truant, Ira doesn't have the best reputation. Her standoffish demeanor makes her difficult to talk to, especially for someone as meek as you. There is a rumour she's been meeting with an older man.

Marina's carefree personality makes her quite popular among her classmates. Adults don't seem to like her very much, probably due to poor grades. Despite the girl's outgoing nature, her worldview is rather cynical.

A boy with an unpleasant sense of humour. Likes picking on people weaker than him, namely you. His family has been a little out of it the past few weeks.

You. Not worth writing about.
Z.A.T.O. is a linear visual novel with roughly 7-8 hours of playtime. There are no choices. The ending is predetermined. Sit back and enjoy your time in a town that doesn't exist.
DISCLAIMER: the game contains strong language, loud noises and flickering images.
Genres
Stats
Languages: English
Engagement
Reviews
Themes across 1924 recent reviews and how positive each mention is. A keyword signal, not full sentiment analysis.
Reviews
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ Russian literature, man.
真是精彩啊zato 除了短篇一向容易有些烂尾的缺点,美术和剧情也已经是最好了,免费的你要什么东西 我大概这辈子都不会忘了你吧
好
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Hours played at review time, across 1.9K reviews with recorded playtime.
positive critical· bar length = how often the theme comes up
What're you looking for in playing this game. You will somehow learn to Love the World and Everything in it. Huh, get it? It's the title, and the whole point of the game. After 9 hours (about 8 hours actually) of enjoying this visual novel, it really hit me with a unique feeling that has never been there before (such experiencing the life of a student in USSR 1986,...). Not that it changes my perspective or what, I learn to appreciate things more, love the world we living, love myself. I definitely recommend this profound game cuz its free and really damn good.
its such a beautiful story with very well written characters and soundtrack. I love it
It's something I'll have to chew on for a while, maybe I'll replay it too. Or force someone else to play so I can talk to them about it. It's very interesting, and I found myself thinking "Exactly!" at Asya's words a few times, certainly not always though. I love my new daughters and son.
Love it to pieces
*Spoiler Warning* Z.A.T.O is an insightful story that highlights the story of Asya Shubina, who holds an uncanny appreciation for everything in the world (Including the introduction) yet the only thing she cannot appreciate or love is herself. Personally I think its the most central theme for me, the idea of self-hatred and constant self-flagellation. I'm certain some parts resonate more for others, but the persistent stubbornness to refuse your own 'good' comes to me as the most powerful. There is a consistently ironic nature in how she is able to find the good in every human, and event but because she perceives herself as something less than human she is almost desperately and maniacally grateful towards the world, this ironic nature continues into how she believes she cannot be kind like ira or emulate the 'beauty' she sees but its contradicted by quite clearly what Marina thinks of her. The bittersweet ending of Asya manages to show how she is able to see herself as more human because once the memories fog she loses that shame of 'existing', built from her social isolation with Tosya likely being a Tulpa and prior traumatic experiences which personally I wish would be explored further. Nevertheless to add on a more unique perspective I believe Tosya, who becomes replaced by 'me' in the captions are more direct by pointing to us the viewer as we see Asya in first person directly gazing at us for the first time. It is the final note to the audience, that "I love you". Thus, how Z.A.T.O shows the unique perspective of Asya Shubina, who comes to love the world and everything in it, including herself. extra note - There is certainly some criticisms/reservations I have about the settings and characters, but ultimately comes down to wishing for more clarity (aka more story) of the world.
Can you die from vitamin D deficiency? No? I love you
This game in and of itself teaches you how to love it. Despite the questions unanswered, despite the vagueness of the message, I love this game and everything in it.
Active players
Estimated daily and monthly active players (DAU/MAU) modeled from peak concurrency.
Players by region
Where this game's players are, estimated from review languages.
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Related
| Game | Estimated lifetime revenue | Reviews | Review score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.8M | 6.7K | 95% | $24.99 | |
| — | 0 | — | — | |
| $0 | 275 | 98% | Free | |
| $391 | 5 | 100% | $4.24 | |
| $148.9K | 1.2K | 98% | $7.99 | |
| $94K | 908 | 92% | $7.99 |