I’ve spent the last few weeks dashing through Hollows, kicking jukeboxes for loot, and arguing with Bangboo mascots that look like they wandered out of a Saturday-morning cartoon. Zenless Zone Zero is officially out of beta, and the vibe is unlike anything HoYoverse has shipped before—part stylish action brawler, part roguelike subway crawl, part slice-of-life sim set in the last city on Earth. If you’re wondering whether to hop a train to New Eridu (and how to fund your Polychrome habit without getting burned), here’s a ground-up look at what makes ZZZ tick.
The Combat Loop: Arcade Flash Meets Fighting-Game Depth
At first glance the controls feel like a 3-D beat ’em up: one button for combos, another for specials, and a big, satisfying dodge that slows time when you perfect-roll an enemy swipe. Then the hidden layers click. Every Agent has a “Chain Attack” timing window; nail it, and you tag a teammate in mid-combo for bonus damage and a fresh set of skills. Elemental rules—called “Attributes” here—stack onto basic strikes, setting up status pops that detonate crowds like neon piñatas.
My favorite discovery so far is the Disruption combo between Nicole and Billy: fire a gravity well, pull enemies in, then let Billy’s twin pistols juggle them like clay pigeons. It feels improvised yet deliberate, the sweet spot where button-mashing meets lab science.
Hollows: Roguelike Dungeons With Room to Breathe
Instead of open-world sprawl, Zenless leans on bite-sized runs through procedurally generated Hollows. Each floor offers branching tiles—battle rooms, puzzle spots, hidden shops—and you pick your route on a retro TV screen that channels 1990s CRT static. A full clear takes ten to fifteen minutes, long enough to feel meaty but short enough for bus rides. Random “Glitch Events” can flip a run on its head: maybe every dodge now fires projectiles, or healing orbs rain after every battle. The unpredictability keeps farming from slipping into autopilot.
Life Between Runs: Coffee, Side Jobs, and VHS Hunting
Back in New Eridu, your Proxy day job feels pleasantly mundane. You’ll pour coffee at the Random Play café, repair Bangboo drones for pocket change, or sift through retro VHS tapes to unlock lore tidbits. These slice-of-life tasks drip-feed Inter-Knot Credits and, more importantly, fleshy character moments. An afternoon shift might reveal why Ellen distrusts the Hollow authority, or why Nekomiya has a secret stash of vintage arcade boards. It’s world-building in small doses, an antidote to the high-octane Hollow dives.
Currency Crash Course
The premium gem is Polychrome—ZZZ’s answer to Stellar Jade or Crystals. You’ll also collect Master Tapes (the gacha ticket) and Dennies (the everyday cash). My spending plan follows three rules:
Secure the daily trickle. Side jobs, weekly Hollow bounties, and the Hollow Zero tower together cough up roughly a ten-pull’s worth of Polychrome every patch.
Subscriptions before splurges. The Tube Pass and City Guide packs return more pulls per dollar than random single top-ups.
Bulk over drips. When a banner really calls my name, I grab a one-time load of Polychrome through an official Zenless Zone Zero top-up during a bonus event and lock the wallet afterward. One purchase, no midnight impulse clicks.
Crafting a Balanced Crew
Early game lets you brute-force with whoever looks coolest, but tougher Hollows punish one-note squads. I keep three lanes covered:
Breaker (shields & crowd control) – Nekomiya’s baseball bats are chef’s-kiss for stun buildup.
Anomaly (DoT & debuffs) – Soukaku’s frost ticks shave boss HP while everyone else dodges AoEs.
Slash DPS – Billy or Koleda crank raw damage once Breakers crack defenses.
Swap one slot for utility—like Nicole’s black-hole grenades—and you’re ready for any bail-out cameo the next event throws at you.
Relics Without the Rage Farm
Zenless calls gear W-Engines and Film Sets. The trick is setting a ceiling: target two key stats (usually Crit Rate and Attribute Mastery), stop rolling once pieces hit “good enough,” and bank the rest of your energy for level caps. If I’m pressed for time before a Pure Wither challenge, I’ll pick up a small pack of energy juice via a trusted Polychrome recharge portal rather than burn fragile nerves on refresh roulette.
Exploration Rewards That Aren’t Just Loot
Scanning alley QR codes or decoding graffiti murals unlocks mixtapes you can actually spin in the jukebox. NPC chains reward goofy Bangboo stickers for your profile card. None of it affects DPS, yet the collectibles make New Eridu feel lived-in—and give me a reason to wander instead of beelining the next Hollow entrance.
The One-Purchase Promise
Gacha FOMO is a hungry beast. My last line of defense is simple: one lump-sum secure ZZZ top-up per patch or not at all. I calculate pity, decide if the featured Agent fills a real roster gap, and pull the trigger only if the math works. Skipping hurts for a day; overspending stings all month.
Final Track Spin
Zenless Zone Zero nails something a lot of live-service titles miss: it gives me action that feels handcrafted, downtime that feels cozy, and monetization that doesn’t shove me into a corner. Whether I’m chain-attacking through a glitch frenzy or arguing with a sentient fridge over late fees, the game keeps surprising me—and that’s rarer than any five-star drop. If you board the Astral Express’s sister subway and find yourself short on Polychrome, top up smart, play at your pace, and enjoy the chaos neon. See you in the Hollows, Proxy.