Zenless Zone Zero devs reveal endgame plans, collabs, Switch potential, more

Dexerto got to sit down with Zenless Zone Zero developers to discuss the game’s gacha mechanics, wider gameplay, endgame content, and future plans.  

Zenless Zone Zero is the latest game from HoYoverse, the developers behind Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail. The game has currently wrapped up its closed beta tests, which gave eager fans a glimpse of the title’s story, colorful characters, and flashy combat. 

Unlike HoYoverse’s other titles, Zenless Zone Zero is an urban fantasy adventure that blends its team-based combat with roguelike and hack-and-slash mechanics. 

While the highly-anticipated gacha game still doesn’t have a launch date outside of a general 2024 release window, Dexerto got to sit down with the HoYoverse dev team to discuss the game’s development, mechanics, and future plans. 

What were the biggest challenges when developing Zenless Zone Zero, and what were your biggest successes?

Until now, the biggest challenge for the production team was the initial positioning of the game, including issues like product differentiation and setting ourselves apart from the intense market competition. To address these issues, we’ve gone through multiple iterations of the game’s world design, many gameplay improvements, and a lot of internal discussion.

Finally, during its first test, we were able to present a version of the game that was well-received by the players. We also hope the equalization test can garner further feedback from players. Currently, the team is still refining various aspects of the game. We believe the sense of impact, fun, and fluidity in Zenless Zone Zero’s combat is satisfying. The combat visuals provide players with a robust and rhythmic experience, creating exciting and seamless gameplay.

We hope our newly designed gameplay system will satisfy both newcomers to action games and veteran players seeking a challenge. We aim to create an action game with a broad audience: no matter what kind of player you are, you should be able to experience the thrill of action in this game.

The Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail communities love each game’s characters and lore. Will Zenless Zone Zero put a big emphasis on these aspects?

Of course, we place great importance on the depth of characters and stories in Zenless Zone Zero. Our team is dedicated to ensuring that each faction has a rich backstory, and we strive to make every character a core part of the game. For example, a significant update in the second beta test is the addition of dedicated character storylines. We want players to have the opportunity to deeply understand each character, including their background, personality, and how they became involved in Hollow exploration. 

We will undoubtedly continue to update and enrich the story content for different characters in the future. We put a lot of attention and creativity into the characters and stories in Zenless Zone Zero, and we hope players will enjoy the experience of getting to know them.

How will the gacha system work in Zenless Zone Zero? Is there anything you can tell us about this area?

At the current stage, the team’s primary focus is still on the ongoing development and refinement of the game. Regarding the business model, we are just beginning to explore it. As players can see in the second beta test, we have already conducted preliminary tests of some related systems.

As for a more detailed and specific business model, we will finalize it as we approach the game’s launch. However, no matter what kind of business model we adopt, we hope to provide players with a friendly gaming experience.

What plans do you have for endgame content in Zenless Zone Zero? Will there be permanent endgame content like the Spiral Abyss and The Forgotten Hall?

We are actively planning and designing the endgame content for Zenless Zone Zero. During the second beta test, players were able to see a part of this content — Hollow Zero. Through Hollow Zero, players can enjoy combat at various difficulty levels. However, that content is still in the test phase.

As a game designed for continuous service, we hope it can become a long-term companion for many players, growing together with them. Therefore, we will continue to update our endgame content throughout this process.

With HoYoverse working on Honkai Impact 3rd, Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail, and Zenless Zone Zero – will these games receive crossovers with one another? We’ve had crossover content in Honkai Impact and Genshin, so will we see this in ZZZ?

The lore of Zenless Zone Zero is distinct and independent from other products. Currently, during the phase of second beta, collaborations with other products haven’t been confirmed. However, I believe that various directions for future collaborations are open.

Any word on whether Zenless Zone Zero will be coming to Nintendo Switch?

We hope that players on different platforms will have the opportunity to experience Zenless Zone Zero in the future. We will share related information upon completing the development and optimization for the respective platforms.