| Zenless Zone Zero | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | Gameplay & Story | Pre-Register & Pre-Order | Review |
Zenless Zone Zero is a fast-paced action gacha RPG where players assemble teams of Agents to battle through challenging encounters and uncover the secrets behind the Hollows. Read our review to see if it's still worth playing in 2026.
Zenless Zone Zero Walkthrough & Guides Wiki
Zenless Zone Zero Review History
| Review | Date | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Version 3.0 | July 2026 | 
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| Version 1.7 | July 2025 |  |
| 1.0 Release | August 2024 |  |
Overview
What is Zenless Zone Zero?
Zenless Zone Zero is an action gacha RPG where players take on the role of the legendary Proxy Phaethon, guiding teams of Agents through dangerous Hollows in real-time combat built around dodges, parries, assists, and powerful team combos. Beyond the main story, players recruit new Agents, build specialized team compositions, strengthen characters through a variety of progression systems, tackle challenging endgame modes, and participate in seasonal events, all while gradually uncovering the mysteries surrounding New Eridu, the Hollows, and the siblings Wise and Belle.
Zenless Zone Zero features:
⚫︎ Fast-Paced Action Combat
⚫︎ Diverse Team Building and Agent Synergies
⚫︎ Overarching Urban Fantasy Story
⚫︎ Stylish Anime-Inspired Visuals
⚫︎ Challenging Endgame Modes
⚫︎ Regular Seasonal Updates and Events
⚫︎ Meaningful Character Progression Systems
For more gameplay details, read everything we know about Zenless Zone Zero’s gameplay and story.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||
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 HoYoverse App |
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 Steam |
 Playstation |
 Xbox |
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 Epic |
 Google Play |
 App Store |
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| Free-to-play | |||||
Zenless Zone Zero Review: Building Momentum Beyond Sixth Street
Looking Back at ZZZ's Second Year
After a year of constant updates, it's easy to judge Zenless Zone Zero one patch at a time. A controversial mechanic here, a great story chapter there, a new Agent that reshapes the meta. But taken individually, those moments rarely answer a much bigger question: has ZZZ actually become a better game than it was a year ago?
Now, with the game entering Version 3.0 before its second anniversary, enough time has passed to answer that question. It's easier to see how those updates built on one another and, more importantly, where they've ultimately left ZZZ today.
Not every experiment paid off. Some mechanics proved more frustrating than exciting, and a few story threads never fully delivered on their early promise. Taken together, the game's second year reveals a version of ZZZ that's steadily improved in ways that individual updates don't always capture.
A Bigger World With Better Storytelling
Season 2 marks a major turning point for ZZZ's narrative. While Waifei Peninsula dramatically expands the game's world beyond the districts of New Eridu, it also pushes Wise and Belle's journey into far more consequential territory, gradually peeling back the mysteries surrounding their abilities, Miss Carole, and the forces operating behind the scenes.
Spoiler Warning: The remainder of this section discusses major story developments from Waifei Peninsula, as well as the opening chapter of Version 3.0. If you'd rather experience those stories firsthand, skip ahead until the last image of this section.
Perhaps the biggest change throughout Season 2 isn't Waifei Peninsula itself, but how ZZZ chooses to tell its story. Moving away from TV Mode wasn't simply about replacing one gameplay mechanic with another. It also meant moving away from one of the defining parts of the Proxy experience. Investigation Zones don't replace that identity outright, but they do create far more opportunities for exploration, combat, and character interactions to flow naturally together, giving the story a much stronger sense of momentum.
That same approach, however, introduces an interesting tradeoff. Because Investigation Zones remain part of the game long after they're introduced, players naturally become familiar with the Hollows they revisit across multiple updates. From a story perspective, that progression makes perfect sense. Phaethon's reputation is built on navigating Hollows that others struggle to understand, and mastering those routes is part of what makes Wise and Belle exceptional Proxies. As a player, though, repeatedly returning to the same environments gradually replaces the tension of exploring the unknown with the confidence of retracing familiar ground. The Hollows never stop being dangerous, but that familiarity inevitably softens the sense of venturing into one of New Eridu's greatest unknowns.
Season 2 also gives Wise and Belle's journey a much stronger sense of direction. While the game's first year established the mysteries surrounding their past, much of that journey was spent chasing scattered clues with few concrete answers. Armed with the lead left by Mayor Mayflower, Waifei Peninsula finally gives the twins something tangible to pursue instead of yet another unanswered question. Under Yixuan's guidance, they begin learning to harness abilities that had previously surfaced only in rare, unexplained moments, while their search for Miss Carole gains meaningful traction. More importantly, the season starts connecting the mysteries that have been building since launch, making it feel like Wise and Belle are finally making real progress toward uncovering the truth behind both their own past and the larger forces shaping New Eridu.
That growing momentum also makes one of Season 2's biggest narrative weaknesses much harder to ignore. The Exaltists begin as one of the season's most intriguing ideas, but gradually become the explanation behind one conspiracy after another. While that connective role initially helps tie Waifei Peninsula together, it eventually makes many of its mysteries feel less like discoveries and more like waiting for the next Exaltist reveal.
By the time Sarah's story concludes and the organization effectively fades from the narrative, I couldn't help feeling that the Exaltists had ultimately served more as a convenient storytelling device than the formidable long-term threat they initially seemed destined to become.
Yixuan, despite serving as the face of Version 2.0 and one of the setting's most influential figures, never quite reaches the potential her introduction suggests. Her quieter moments with Wise and Belle do a wonderful job establishing her as a mentor, and it's clear she places a great deal of trust in them throughout the season. At the same time, the story repeatedly pulls her attention elsewhere, leaving many of her most important relationships and personal struggles feeling like they unfold just beyond the player's reach. Whether she's answering the responsibilities that come with being Grandmaster or confronting deeply personal moments like Yijiang, I often found myself wishing those moments had carried a stronger emotional presence rather than simply moving the plot forward.
Fortunately, that isn't representative of Season 2's storytelling as a whole. It consistently shines when it turns its attention to smaller, more personal stories. Seed's journey toward accepting the loss of her adoptive father, Lucia finally finding closure with the father she lost to the Hollows, and Ye Shunguang's fading memories each explore grief from a different perspective, proving that ZZZ is often at its best when it slows down and focuses on the people living through its world rather than the mysteries surrounding it.
That emphasis on character growth also extends beyond individual story chapters. Cissia first enters the story in Version 2.6 before becoming playable in 2.7, but her role continues well into Version 2.8 instead of ending once her banner arrives. As she spends more time with Wise and Belle, their relationship develops naturally across multiple updates rather than being confined to a single patch. It's a subtle storytelling shift, but one that gives the twins' relationships room to grow over time rather than confining their most meaningful development to a single update.
Enter Roscaelifer
Roscaelifer could have easily felt disconnected from everything that came before it. Waifei Peninsula had already expanded ZZZ far beyond the streets of New Eridu, and another leap into unfamiliar territory risked pushing the story even further from the identity it had spent the past year redefining. Instead, the transition never feels jarring. Familiar faces continue traveling alongside Wise and Belle, unresolved threads carry naturally into the new chapter, and the story gives players time to settle into Roscaelifer before its larger conflicts begin unfolding. The result is a setting that feels like a genuine expansion of the world rather than a fresh start designed to leave the past behind.
That slower introduction also ended up being one of my favorite parts of Roscaelifer. Instead of rushing to show off the next big mystery or throwing players straight into another crisis, the story gives the city room to introduce itself through its Bangboo residents, its day-to-day routines, and the people who call it home. Those quieter moments also give Wise and Belle a chance to just... breathe. Despite everything that's happened, they're still looking ahead with cautious optimism as they begin their treatment, and those smaller interactions make the opening feel surprisingly grounded before the story inevitably starts turning up the pressure. By the time the larger conflicts begin taking shape, Roscaelifer already feels like somewhere you've settled into rather than simply another destination on the map.
Looking back now, it's clear that ZZZ has grown well beyond the streets of New Eridu, yet its best stories remain the most personal ones. The world feels larger without losing sight of the people living in it, and even as the scale continues to grow, the story's strongest moments still come from the quieter, more personal conflicts between its characters.
Not every mystery receives the slow burn I'd hoped for, and a few larger plot threads still move faster than I'd like. Even so, Roscaelifer's opening leaves me optimistic that ZZZ can continue building on its strongest stories, and after everything the game's second year accomplished, I'm more excited than ever to see where Wise and Belle's journey leads next.
Combat Continues to Raise the Bar
If there's one area where ZZZ's second year confidently builds upon its foundation, it's combat. Rather than reinventing the system, the game continues expanding it with new mechanics, increasingly distinctive Agent kits, and bosses that ask more of the player than simply reacting to a flash on screen. Every major update introduces something fresh without losing sight of what already made combat satisfying in the first place.
One of the biggest gameplay additions throughout the game's second year comes in the form of Rupture, an Agent Specialty centered around Sheer Force, an HP-scaling damage type that ignores enemy DEF. Rather than simply introducing another variation of the traditional Attack role, most Rupture Agents revolve around spending HP to unleash stronger attacks before recovering it through their own abilities, creating a satisfying risk-and-reward playstyle. While Yixuan plays a little differently by relying on her Adrenaline Gauge instead, Rupture as a whole feels like a genuinely creative expansion to the game's combat sandbox rather than another label for dealing damage.
That philosophy extends beyond Rupture to Season 2's roster as a whole. Whether it's Yidhari's deliberate hammer swings, Banyue's fighting game-inspired combo strings, Aria's aggressive ground-pound playstyle, or the growing emphasis on Aftershock teams through Agents like Orphie, Yuzuha, and Ju Fufu, each newcomer introduces mechanics that encourage different ways of approaching combat instead of simply chasing bigger damage numbers.
Potential Vision continues Season 2's focus on expanding combat by revisiting older Agents instead of simply introducing new mechanics. Characters like Burnice, Grace, and Soldier 11 receive meaningful additions to their kits that better align them with Season 2's evolving combat design. Burnice, for example, grows beyond her original role as a Disorder enabler by gaining a new follow-up attack that rewards players for rotating her back onto the field, allowing her to contribute meaningful burst damage through Abloom instead of simply increasing her numbers.
It's a relatively uncommon approach for action gachas, where older characters are more often revitalized through new teammates or equipment than direct additions to their kits. The same approach could also keep older support Agents relevant through future Potential Vision updates, opening up even more team-building possibilities over time. It's the kind of long-term support I'm excited to see more of, especially in a game where players spend months, or even years, investing in their favorite characters.
Season 2's bosses are equally impressive. New encounters introduce mechanics that go beyond simply surviving increasingly powerful attacks, asking players to actively engage with positioning, timing, and environmental mechanics. Some encounters ask players to manipulate the battlefield before creating an opening, while others hide from view and must be tracked down before combat can continue. The game even begins experimenting with enemies that remove the familiar assist flash entirely, encouraging players to learn attack animations and trust their own timing instead of relying on visual prompts.
Not every new gameplay mechanic lands quite as well, however. Miasmic Shields are an interesting idea on paper, encouraging players to create openings through Dodge Counters, Defensive Assists, and Ultimates before dealing massive Purification Damage. In practice, though, I found them considerably less enjoyable in score-driven modes like Shiyu Defense and Deadly Assault.
Whenever I mistimed a parry or accidentally whiffed an Ultimate, I wasn't just thinking about the mistake itself—I was already thinking about how much progress I had just lost toward breaking the shield. Every mistake stopped feeling like something I could immediately recover from and instead became another delay in a mode where every second mattered. The frustration often outweighed the satisfaction of finally breaking the shield. Instead of making the encounter feel more engaging, it sometimes felt like I was simply trying to earn the right to start dealing meaningful damage again.
Miasmic Shields were among Season 2's weaker combat additions, but they also illustrate the game's willingness to experiment with encounter design. New mechanics consistently encourage experimentation, Agents feel increasingly expressive, and boss encounters demand more from players without sacrificing the stylish action that defines the game. Version 3.0 continues that trend with the introduction of Wind through Velina, adding another layer to Anomaly teams while further expanding player options. Even when some additions proved more successful than others, Season 2 never stopped giving players new ways to approach combat.
Style That Still Stands Out
Zenless Zone Zero has always had one of the strongest audiovisual identities among modern gacha games, and its second year only reinforces that reputation. If anything, Waifei Peninsula gives the art team even more room to experiment. Each Investigation Zone carries its own atmosphere, with abandoned streets, ruined architecture, and Hollow distortions telling stories long before a single line of dialogue is spoken. There's a surprising sense of order to the chaos, making every environment feel intentionally crafted rather than randomly assembled.
My only real nitpick comes from a handful of Season 2's designs. Yixuan, Yidhari, and Lucia all maintain distinct silhouettes, but they also share enough visual sensibilities that they don't stand out from one another quite as much as earlier additions to the roster. It's hardly enough to detract from the overall presentation, but I would've liked to see a little more variety in some of the season's headline characters.
On the other hand, combat remains just as visually satisfying. Every new Agent brings a distinct animation style to the battlefield, while flashy effects overlap without completely obscuring the action. Whether it's an Ultimate, a perfectly timed Defensive Assist, or a boss unleashing one of its more elaborate attacks, fights consistently strike that balance between stylish spectacle and readable gameplay that Zenless Zone Zero has become known for.
The soundtrack deserves just as much praise. I honestly can't think of a single track that felt out of place. Whether exploring Waifei Peninsula or facing one of the season's standout boss encounters, the music consistently reinforces the mood without overstaying its welcome. Strong voice performances across both returning and new characters further elevate the story's biggest moments, while punchy sound effects give every hit, parry, and explosion a satisfying amount of weight. Together, they make the overall presentation one of the game's biggest strengths.
Experimenting With the Endgame
One thing I came to appreciate throughout ZZZ's second year was its willingness to experiment with endgame content. Deadly Assault quickly became one of my favorite additions, giving players another mode to put their rosters to the test without demanding perfect scores just to earn the cycle's Polychromes. It's very much an endgame activity for players with three well-built teams, so newer players will naturally take longer to get the most out of it, but I think it fills that role well.
That same willingness to experiment extended beyond new modes and into the mechanics that shaped them. Rupture was a genuinely interesting addition to Zenless Zone Zero, introducing a new Specialty that played differently from everything before it. Miasmic Shields also struck me as a good idea on paper. Rather than encouraging players to brute-force every encounter, they rewarded those who understood boss mechanics and knew when to capitalize on openings.
Where I found things a little shakier was how those mechanics interacted with score-driven endgame content. I often caught myself holding onto Ultimates and Defensive Assists specifically for Miasmic Shields instead of using them naturally throughout a fight, knowing that mistiming one meant losing valuable progress toward breaking the shield. It certainly demanded cleaner play, and I could always retry the stage, but there were moments where the frustration outweighed the satisfaction. Rather than feeling rewarded for mastering the mechanic, I sometimes felt like I was simply trying to earn the right to start dealing meaningful damage again.
I found a similar issue in the game's attempts throughout its second year to rein in Miyabi. Ice Resistance had already gone a long way toward encouraging players to branch out into other team compositions, making Freeze immunity occasionally feel like an unnecessary extra step. Layering both restrictions together sometimes came across as an overcorrection rather than a natural incentive to diversify.
Looking back, that's probably my biggest takeaway from the game's second year of endgame updates. More often than not, each update encouraged me to rethink my teams instead of relying on the same solutions forever, and I think that's ultimately healthier for the game, even if some of those pushes occasionally felt heavier-handed than they needed to be.
A Better Game Between Updates
Not every improvement over the game's second year came from new story chapters or combat systems. Some of the most noticeable changes were the ones that simply made playing Zenless Zone Zero more convenient. Better navigation, cleaner interfaces, and an improved world map made moving around Waifei Peninsula far less cumbersome than it could have been, especially given how much larger the region is than Sixth Street and Lumina Square.
The game's second year also continued to improve its social features with additions like Outposts and the Intel Board. They don't replace dedicated community spaces, but they do make the game feel a little less solitary. I found myself checking in for the extra rewards and chatting every now and then, small interactions that helped make the community feel more present during the daily grind without demanding much of my time.
One of my favorite additions, however, was the Polychrome Guide introduced toward the end of the season. Being able to see exactly how many Polychromes a patch offered, neatly categorized by origin, made planning future pulls far more straightforward. It's a small feature in the grand scheme of things, but one that quietly removes a lot of the guesswork from saving for upcoming Agents.
None of these additions are particularly flashy on their own, but together they make ZZZ feel noticeably smoother than it did a year ago. The biggest improvements aren't always the ones headlining an update. Sometimes, they're the ones you stop noticing because the game simply feels better to play every time you log in.
Is Zenless Zone Zero Worth It?
A Game That Keeps Getting Better
ZZZ's second year marks the point at which the game finally grows beyond the foundation laid in its first year. The introduction of the Waifei Peninsula broadens the world beyond the familiar streets of New Eridu, pushing Wise and Belle closer to the truth behind Helios Academy. Aside from that, combat continues to evolve with creative new mechanics and Agent designs, and a steady stream of quality-of-life improvements makes the game easier to enjoy every day.
That isn't to say every experiment lands perfectly. Some storylines could have benefited from a slower burn, while parts of the endgame occasionally leaned a little too heavily into steering players toward specific answers. Throughout its second year, ZZZ rarely settles for simply repeating what already worked, and more often than not, those risks pay off.
What impressed me most was how confidently the game continued building on itself throughout its second year. Looking back now, it's easy to see how those individual changes gradually shaped the game into something far more cohesive than it was a year ago, with Version 3.0 naturally carrying that momentum into its next chapter.
If Season 1 introduced ZZZ, then Season 2 is when it truly found its footing. It stumbled every now and then, sure, but it always kept moving forward, and more often than not, those steps took the game in the right direction. Version 3.0 only reinforces that momentum, making me even more optimistic about where Wise and Belle's journey is headed next. There's still room to improve, but after everything the game's second year accomplished, I have little hesitation recommending ZZZ to anyone looking for one of the strongest live-service action RPGs available today.
How to Catch Up as a New Player
Starting Zenless Zone Zero two years after launch can seem intimidating. With dozens of limited Agents, multiple endgame modes, and an ever-growing story, it's easy to feel like you've already fallen behind. Fortunately, ZZZ does a surprisingly good job of helping new players catch up. Between story rewards, events, and permanent content, you'll earn plenty of Polychromes while building a roster capable of clearing the main campaign and gradually working toward the endgame.
One of the biggest priorities for new players is simply progressing through the story. Not only does it unlock new gameplay systems and activities, but it also provides a steady stream of Polychromes, upgrade materials, and other resources that will strengthen your roster. Although rerolling is technically possible, it's generally not worth the effort since reaching the gacha takes a while, and the game already provides enough resources to build a capable roster naturally. Several Standard S-Rank Agents have also received Potential Vision upgrades, making even some of your earliest pulls worthwhile long-term investments.
When it comes to spending resources, focus on building one complete team before branching out into additional characters. A single well-built squad can comfortably carry you through the story, while spreading your resources too thin will only slow your progress. Prioritize Agent levels, W-Engines, and Core Skills first, save serious Drive Disc farming until later, and don't forget to pick up Mini Cargo Trucks and HIA Coins whenever you come across them. Those extra resources and rewards add up much faster than you might expect.
Here's a general rundown of how to steadily progress once your routine opens up:
| New Player Progression Guide |
|---|
| 1. Complete Your Daily Errands |
| 2. Spend Your Battery Charge |
| 3. Clear Hollow Zero and Weekly Activities |
| 4. Finish Side Commissions When Available |
| 5. Participate in Limited-Time Events |
| 6. Continue Raising Your Inter-Knot Level |
From there, it's simply a matter of playing consistently. As your Inter-Knot Level rises and your roster expands, you'll naturally unlock stronger teams, better gear, and more options for tackling increasingly difficult content. While it may take some time before you're ready to challenge every endgame mode, ZZZ does a good job of easing new players into its systems, making the journey toward catching up feel much less overwhelming than its two-year lifespan might suggest.
If you're looking for a more in-depth breakdown of ZZZ's progression systems, you can check out our beginner's guide using the button below.
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Thank God there is another person other than Alfonso who handled the ZZZ review on this site. His takes are honestly terrible for most things.