Zenless Zone Zero is worth trying if you enjoy fast combat, frequent character swaps, and a cast with plenty of personality. HoYoverse’s free-to-play action RPG gives you satisfying ways to dodge, counter, and punish enemies, although developing your team takes patience.
This Zenless Zone Zero review looks at what keeps those fights interesting, how the story has grown, and what happens after you recruit an Agent you want to use.
Combat Makes Every Character Swap Count
You take up to three Agents into battle and control one at a time. Each has their own attacks and abilities, so switching gives you access to different tools throughout a fight.
The fun starts when those swaps become part of your defense. Time a suitable assist correctly and your incoming Agent can intercept an attack, then answer with a follow-up. Alongside dodges and counters, these moments give you reasons to watch enemies closely instead of constantly pressing attack.
Daze adds another layer. As the gauge fills, an enemy approaches a stun that leaves them vulnerable to increased damage and Chain Attacks. That creates a useful rhythm as you build pressure, force an opening, and bring in the right Agent to take advantage.
Early encounters can be forgiving, so the appeal may initially come from the animation and impact of each hit. Harder challenges ask more of your timing and team composition. That is where learning how your Agents work together becomes more rewarding.
The Story Gives You Reasons to Care about the Cast
Between missions, you follow Belle and Wise, siblings who run the Random Play video rental store and secretly work as Proxies. They guide Agents through dangerous spaces called Hollows, while their everyday life revolves around customers, neighbors, and the people they meet through work.
That smaller-scale setup gives the opening its charm. Nicole, Anby, and Billy bring very different personalities to their scenes, and the comic panels and expressive animation give conversations energy. There is room for humor before the larger mysteries demand your attention.
Later chapters expand the setting and give the siblings’ personal story more direction. The cast remains a major attraction, though the wider plot can be uneven. Some developments move quickly, while quieter character scenes have more space to land.
You should also expect a different experience from the game’s launch-era TV exploration. HoYoverse’s Version 1.4 changes reworked the early campaign, and later updates added larger environments where movement, conversations, and combat fit together more naturally.
Character Progression Takes More than Leveling Up
Getting a new Agent gives you another way to play, but you still need to develop them. Levels, promotions, combat skills, and Core Skills all contribute to their effectiveness. Then you have their W-Engine and six Drive Disc slots to consider.
W-Engines supply stats and passive effects, while Drive Discs add further stats and set bonuses. These choices let you build around an Agent’s strengths, so equipment decisions have a purpose beyond raising a power number.
The slower part comes when you start chasing better disc stats. A usable build and an ideal build can be very different projects. If you enjoy making gradual improvements, there is plenty to work on. If you want every new character ready immediately, the material requirements can become frustrating.
Recruitment adds another consideration because Signal Search uses randomized rewards. Limited Agents, W-Engines, and duplicate upgrades compete for resources, so choosing a few favorites makes the commitment easier to manage.
Farming Is Faster, but Resources Still Limit Progress
Battery Charge restricts how frequently you can farm certain development rewards. That means progress eventually follows a routine of collecting materials and deciding where to spend them.
There are tools to reduce repetition. The Version 2.5 update introduced quick-sweep functionality with Ether Batteries for eligible rewards. It saves time, although the resource cost remains.
Modes such as Hollow Zero, Shiyu Defense, and Deadly Assault give your developed teams somewhere to go. Your enjoyment will depend partly on whether improving combat results keeps you interested between story releases.
Is Zenless Zone Zero Worth Playing?
Yes, especially if reactive action and character building are what you want from an RPG. The strongest takeaway from this Zenless Zone Zero review is that its battles give you an immediate reason to play, while its cast gives you a reason to return.
Start with the free campaign and see whether that rhythm suits you before spending on recruitment.
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