Summary
The HoYoverse took off in 2020 with the release ofGenshin Impact. It was not their first published game but it is the one that exploded in popularity. Two things can contribute to that factor. One, it was 2020 and everyone had time on their hands because of the lockdown.
Two, it was a lot likeThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which was huge in 2017, and now it wasn’t beholden to a Nintendo console.Genshin Impact’spopularity paved the way forHonkai: Star Railand nowZenless Zone Zero. What doesZenless Zone Zerohave that the others don’t from its various mechanics, stats, and character systems? Let’s find out.
6The Battle System
Building Combos With A Party
Genshin Impactwas set in an open-world and it had action gameplay without many limits.Honkai: Star Railwas a turn-based RPG.Zenless Zone Zerois like a hybrid of the two because it does not take place in an open-world environment. It has dungeons similar toHonkai: Star RailandZenless Zone Zerohas the action combat ofGenshin Impactwith a twist.
Players can go into a mission with up to three characters inZenless Zone Zeroand some unlock through the story like in the case of Anby, Billy, and Nicole. Characters have a basic attack, a special that can be used once a meter is charged, and there are assists too. Switching to the next character at a certain peak will cause something interesting to happen like Billy will spin around the battlefield blasting his twin guns. It’s both simple and dynamic thanks to the party system.
5The TV Board
A Simplified Dungeon Crawler
Combat is a small part of the game though as players will spend a majority on a board highlighted by TVs. Players assume the role of eitherWise or Belle inZenless Zone Zerowho enter dungeons with the three playable heroes passively. They use a rabbit-like avatar called a Bangboo to hack into certain feeds.
Players will guide theBangboo inZenless Zone Zerothrough a maze of TVs with surprises around every corner. They will pick up coins, materials, and other valuables. Plus they will solve puzzles like cracking through bricked walls or sliding a trolley onto a button to wedge a door open. Hero characters can explore a bit in-between fights but it won’t amount to much.
4Restoring Health
Dodging Is More Important Than Ever
Finding out how to heal in an RPG can be one of the first things players look up in guides. Unlike past HoYoverse games,Zenless Zone Zerodoes not have healing items. Most hero characters don’t have healing magic either. SomeW-Engines inZenless Zone Zero, which are like armor and accessories combined into one, can have passive health boosts.
They are rare though. Instead, players can get lucky and find ways to craft healing items to be spent right away in the TV portion of dungeons. Players have to master dodging inZenless Zone Zeroquickly more so than in other RPGs if they want to survive.
3The Leveling Up System
Traditional Gacha More Or Less
Leveling up inZenless Zone Zerois not that far removed from the other two recent HoYoverse games. In typical gacha-based fashion, players can use materials to level up characters individually. Using Trainee Investigator Logs onBilly inZenless Zone Zero, for example, can increase his level anywhere between two and ten.
There are level gates that must be broken via Seals to move a hero like Billy past ten. There are other ways to upgrade a player’s profile too including the Inter-Knot Level. Like many gacha-based games, there is a lot to learn inZenless Zone Zerowhich can be quite taxing for players without patience.
2New Ways Of Storytelling
From Comic Panels To In-Game Solutions
Zenless Zone Zerohas more ways it presents players with its story than the other two major HoYoverse games. The most common way is through side-by-side characters talking in panels. It’s a common practice in RPGs just as it is common to use in-game cutscenes for big moments.
From cutting robots in half to jumping out of a building, the cutscenes are masterfully directed. Then there are the manga-like panels with interesting drawings. Every example mentioned is fully voiced with only about 20% of the dialogue overall, if that, being text only.Zenless Zone Zerofeels like it got a big boost in presentation, so it’s always great to see how a developer can evolve.
1The Social Aspects
Persona-Light
Players could bond with heroes and NPCs slightly in the other two major HoYoverse games.Zenless Zone Zerotakes the social aspects to a whole new level. Players can bond with heroes outside of battle similar in ways tothePersonaseriesbut on a smaller scale.
They can also manage a video store which is a major side quest. The town players reside in is smaller, even with the extra districts unlocked later. This makes it easier for players to bond with the world ofZenless Zone Zeroitself more besides the characters that reside in it.
