Ever since Genshin Impact broke into the mainstream back in September 2020, developer HoYoverse has established itself as the premier gacha game studio, with Honkai Star Rail going on to achieve similar success. However, this leaves newcomer Zenless Zone Zero in an odd place as it joins a heated battle against HoYo’s other hits for a seat at the already-crammed table.
Similarly to its approach with Star Rail, HoYoverse has come to the sensible conclusion to make ZZZ its own beast. It’s not more Genshin or Star Rail, but instead a smart collision of the two. Exploration is out of the window in favor of a smaller scale, intimate, story and combat-driven experience - which it knocks out of the park and then some.
ZZZ’s combat is the star of the show - and it needed to be considering most of the gameplay is combat. There’s virtually zero exploration to be found in the gacha adventure, despite its gorgeous environments. While there are multiple maps to visit, packed with side quests and a handful of simple lost cargo trucks to find, these zones aren’t all that interactive; they’re more of a means to an end. Most of ZZZ takes place in Hollows, which are effectively combat corridors. While these areas are even more empty than the game’s explorable zones, almost like a 3rd Impact stage, they do give you the option to engage in ZZZ’s superb combat.
Missions will have you choose three characters to make a team comp and then get to work. With basic attacks, combos, special attacks, ultimates, chain attacks, assists, dodges, counters, and more, there’s a surprising amount of depth in ZZZ’s combat. Think Genshin Impact mixed with your favorite hack ‘n’ slash action game. You won’t just be mashing the attack button and spamming your abilities to succeed here. Instead, you’ll need to think carefully about which character you bring in for a chain attack to activate a buff that helps another character, and so on. It’s not quite Devil May Cry V, but it’s the closest HoYoverse has come to a proper action game.
Boss encounters are a shining stage for Zenless’ slick combat, cinematic clashes that really test your skills at dodge timing, character swaps, and the ins and outs of your character’s kits. When the music kicks into high gear and you’re executing combos on the beat, Zenless Zone Zero feels simply incredible. I was slightly under-levelled for one fight and had to pull out all the stops to come out on top, rewarding me for using the surprising variety of tools at my disposal in combat.
Though you’d think the more demanding combat of ZZZ would make its endgame more of a slog, it (thankfully) has the opposite effect. Since enemies are tougher, you not only need to perfect your builds and teams outside of combat but also master them during combat. Plus, between Hollow Zero and Shiyu Defense, inspired by Star Rail’s Simulated Universe roguelike mode and Genshin’s Spiral Abyss respectively, the activity selection is great. If you’ve played HoYo’s previous games, then yes, you’ll recognize the setup of these modes, but that doesn’t make them any less than stellar thanks to the fresh combat system. It helps that the daily grind can be completed really quickly too.
While blasting through the narrative to get to the endgame modes will still be many players’ approach here, don’t overlook Zenless Zone Zero’s story. You’re a Proxy, a tech-whizz-for-hire that helps gangs sneak in and out of the Hollows, restricted areas overrun with dangerous monsters, which threaten to turn anyone that enters into a monster too if they stay there too long. Without going into spoilers, there’s a mysterious hacker, a super-powered AI, and various gangs all in it to win, with the twin's Belle and Wise at the center of the mystery.
HoYoVerse’s characters are easy to love, but actively listening to them during story missions is far from an easy ride. The progression from Genshin Impact to Honkai Star Rail saw most of the overly verbose and lengthy dialog cut down to a more palatable size, and a further refinement has been made with ZZZ.
Dialog is short and sweet, instead putting an emphasis on how expressive and bursting with personality its many characters are. Yes, there are still moments of obvious exposition but it’s much more lively, making for a more enjoyable narrative in general.
Furthermore, ZZZ takes an interesting approach to narrative. In keeping with its relaxed, street style, Zenless tells its story through standard conversations, cutscenes, and cartoon-esque hand-drawn sections. I particularly love that sequences involving multiple characters talking often use more dynamic comic book-like frames that see characters swap in and out. It’s much more engaging than bland back-and-forths.
ZZZ’s relaxed method of storytelling also fuels its slice-of-life vibe. If you want a break from combat or questing, then you can kick back in the arcade (which also features online multiplayer), invite a companion to hang out, or set up shop at the Random Play video store. It’s the perfect way to relax in the charming world HoYoverse has created here, even if many of these systems are functionally very simple. In fact, I wish managing the shop was more hands-on, even if it clashed with the relaxed, laid-back style of ZZZ.
This is all upheld by one of Zenless Zone Zero’s most outstanding elements - its presentation. Sure, HoYoverse has long been known for the strong identity and visuals of its games, but it’s never been this good. Every menu, every location, every animation, everything in ZZZ oozes style like a veritable ocean, even giving a Persona a run for its money. There’s a robot barista with a coffee machine for a head. How about a noodle bar run by an Oni-like character with massive robotic bamboo arms for whipping up noodles in a jiffy? This presentation is irresistibly charming, going all-in on its ‘urban fantasy’ theme to great success.
However, it does lead to one issue, albeit one that can be resolved with experience. The menus and user interface are often difficult to understand at a glance and clunky to use. Not only are there heaps of different tabs trapping you in nests of sub-menus, from dailies to Inter-Knot levels, but each one is busy.
Take the character page, for example, which is needlessly cramped to accommodate its visual stylings, which in turn forces you into multiple pages just to level up your characters, equip and level gear, and more - a loop that you will be repeating many, many times. Likewise, there are several handy quality-of-life features, like an auto-equip option for Drive Disc but not one to level them all at once.
Clunky menus and a few under-utilized systems aside, Zenless Zone Zero absolutely begins on strong footing. Its relentless charm wins you over, inviting you to spend time in its world and with its characters in a way that even surpasses Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail in this regard. When it comes time to step back from the Snakes arcade machine and put on the boxing gloves, it’s similarly strong, with surprisingly in-depth and engaging hack ‘n’ slash action.
Zenless Zone Zero’s faults are easily redeemed by its strong overall package, offering a gorgeous world and slick, stylish combat that makes for the most exciting gacha adventure yet. While it’s much smaller than the massive open world of Genshin Impact or the galaxy-spanning tales of Honkai, it’s a game that feels bursting with style in a way that HoYoverse has never managed before.
