Zenless Zone Zero

The player may select between Wise and Belle Arna at the start of the game. They assume the role of a Proxy, a for-hire guide who provides mapping and direction within supernatural disaster zones known as Hollows.^[5][6] The selected Proxy will interact with and hire Agents for protection in Hollows, who serve as the primary playable characters in place of the protagonist. Through gacha mechanics, the player may summon Agents for use in combat. In addition to Agents, players can summon rabbit-like robots known as Bangboo to perform assistance actions. Parties are built from three Agents and one Bangboo, with emphasis on specific combinations to create synergistic teams. The created party is then used to fight enemies, which are represented by distorted entities known as Ethereals, as well as human opponents. Only one Agent may be actively controlled at any time, while other Agents may perform attacks or enhancements autonomously. The player can freely change the controlled Agent at any time in combat. Bangboo cannot be controlled in primary gameplay, but have been playable in platformer minigames available during event modes.^[6]

The game features an in-game clock system, with the days divided into morning, afternoon, evening, and midnight. Players may explore the overworld outside of combat to meet Agents at specific times and develop affinity with them.^[6]

Zenless Zone Zero follows the live service game model, with new updates (titled Versions) released approximately once every six weeks that add to the plot. Each Version contains quests known as Commissions, which follow the player's selected protagonist as they interact with Agents and non-playable characters, explore the Hollows and the city of New Eridu, and reveal more of the mysteries surrounding events prior to the start of the game. The game organizes major narrative arcs into Seasons, with each Season corresponding to a major Version update that increments the X value in an X.Y versioning scheme.^[3][6]

Zenless Zone Zero was produced by Zhenyu Li.^[12] The development team cited Persona 5, Digimon World, and Street Fighter as influences for Zenless Zone Zero, influences from Street Fighter can be seen within the animation of characters during combat while the influences of Digimon World can be seen in the implementation of the in-game clock system. The development team stressed that Zenless Zone Zero has a unique style.^[13][14]

Characters in Zenless Zone Zero have different designs based on their faction; For instance, the design for Victoria Housekeeping characters is based on Victorian-era butlers and maids with tropes from horror movies.^[11] There is an emphasis on quality over quantity regarding the development of characters.^[13]

Unlike the character designs in miHoYo's previous games such as Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, Zenless Zone Zero took a different direction with its variety of playable characters; There are non-human playable characters such as Ben Bigger, a grizzly bear, Soukaku, a blue-colored oni, and Billy Kid, an android^[15] gunslinger.^[16][17] During the planning stages, these non-human characters were not intended to be present in the game but the team did find them fun and later incorporated them into the game.^[18]

The developer has adjusted gameplay elements after player feedback. Late in 2024, the TV Mode was largely truncated due to generally negative reception of the puzzle-based design.^[19] The version 2.0 update in July 2025 optimized the hub world design and user interface to improve player's experience.^[20]

miHoYo revealed the game in May 2022 and began holding closed beta tests, known as "Tuning Tests", for PC and iOS in August of the same year.^[21] A second closed beta test, called an "Equalizing Test", was also held for PC and iOS in November 2023.^[22] A third beta test, called an "Amplifying Test", was held for Android, PC, and iOS, in April 2024.^[23] During Sony Interactive Entertainment's State of Play presentation in January 2024, a PlayStation 5 port of the game was announced as a timed console exclusive.^[24] A technical test was held for the PS5 in April 2024. The release date was announced in late May of that same year. In June 2026, miHoYo released the game on Steam.^[25][26]

The game was released on July 4. To promote the game, HoYoverse collaborated with several graffiti artists to create Zenless Zone Zero-themed graffiti in 19 cities in Indonesia.^[27] An advertisement campaign on the Manila Light Rail Transit in the Philippines was held.^[28] A series of launch events titled "New Eridu City Tour" is being held in 19 locations worldwide.^[29] Another series of events titled "Zenless Dazzle Expo" is held within six comic conventions.^[30]

In July 2024, HoYoverse, through a collaboration between them and Lofi Girl, released a Zenless Zone Zero-themed Lofi Girl video featuring the character Belle though its HoYoFair YouTube channel, which features lo-fi remixes of select Zenless Zone Zero soundtracks.^{[31][32][33][b]}

Prior to the game's release, the Chinese video game news website 17173 noted that HoYoverse had significant experience with action games, considering Zenless Zone Zero as both a return to the genre and a potential breakthrough for the company. They believed that HoYoverse had yet to encounter significant rivals in the action game category and that Zenless Zone Zero could "stabilize and expand the user market." 17173 also emphasized the game's strong stylized design and trendy visual elements, noting that it inherited HoYoverse's expertise in the action category while presenting a distinct and unique work.^[44]

Eurogamer said that the combat and day-to-day exploration exciting, and the world setting unique and immersive.^[39] Kotaku said its combat system is similar to miHoYo's previous game, Honkai Impact 3rd.^[16]

Paste, in its more critical review, praised the character design and variety, while calling the starter playable characters' usage repetitive and the TV mode dull and uninspiring.^[45] PC Gamer criticized the combat system by calling it "mindless mouse clicking".^[43]

In Japan, four critics from Famitsu gave the game a total score of 34 out of 40.^[40]

Zenless Zone Zero has surpassed 50 million downloads around the world just three days after launch.^[46] The mobile version of the game grossed almost US$52 (equivalent to $53.37 in 2025) million in its first 11 days and US$100 million in its first month.^[47][48][49] Chinese video game news website GameLook estimated the total revenue from all platforms of the game for July 2024 to exceed CN¥ 2.2 billion (US$306 (equivalent to $314.05 in 2025) million.)^[50]