Being the newest addition to HoYoverse’s growing library of gacha games,Zenless Zone Zerostill has a ways to go before it reaches the same number of playable characters as games likeGenshin ImpactandHonkai: Star Rail. AsZenless Zone Zerocontinues to expand its playable agent offerings in the months since its July 2024 release, the game is sure to add numerous characters worth pulling from upcoming banners. However, the game is limited when it comes to certain types of agent specialties that should receive attention in future updates in order to provide better team balance.
Zenless Zone Zero’s current banner puts the spotlight onJane Doe as the latest S-Rank agentplayers can pull for, but while having a new Physical Anomaly character players can add to their teams is great, this combination of attribute and specialty is also shared with the agent Piper. This overlap highlights a trend forZenless Zone Zero, where some existing combinations of attributes and specialties receive new agents. In contrast, other unused combinations get no representation, and Defense, Stun, and Anomaly characters are the biggest victims of this issue.
Physical
Defense
Defense specialty agents are currently the most all-around lacking specialty inZenless Zone Zero, with only Ben and Seth currently available to recruit. Having a Defense agent on a team is primarily useful for boss fights since these agents tend to tank damage quite well, so it’s likely more will be added asZenless Zone Zerocontinues to grow and add more challenging bosses for players to test their skills against. Still, having only three total options onceCaesar is released in the upcoming 1.2 bannermakes it difficult to work these agents into versatile team compositions.
Electric
Stun
Although the Stun, Anomaly, and Support specialties only have four representatives at this time, Stun and Anomaly are in more need of diversity due to the overlap between attributes in their agents. Both Anby and Qingyi are Electric attribute Stun agents, but withQingyi being one of the best agents in the game, Anby has become somewhat obsolete. There are other attributes that still lack Stun representation, which begs the question of why HoYoverse decided to introduce another Electric Stun agent before branching out to a new attribute.
Fire
Anomaly
Anomaly agents are arguably in a worse position than Stun agents at the moment, with only three current options until Burnice is released, two of which overlap in attribute. Both Piper and the new agentJane Doe share the Physical attribute, and like Anby and Qingyi, Jane Doe far outclasses Piper as a Physical Anomaly agent. It’s a shame to see some characters become obsolete so early inZenless Zone Zero’s lifespan, but at least Piper and Anby being available as A-Rank agents makes them easier to acquire for players who miss out on pulling their S-Rank counterparts.
How Zenless Zone Zero Could Diversify its Defense, Stun, and Anomaly Agent Offerings
It’s clear thatAttack and Support agentsare currently in the best position amongZenless Zone Zero’s specialties. However, future agent additions should capitalize on the gaps left in other specialties' attribute combinations to create a more diverse roster for players to build their teams around. Ether as an attribute could really use some representation across Defense, Stun, and Anomaly specialties, so hopefully, HoYoverse will take this into consideration when developing new agents for banners beyond the upcoming 1.2.
WithZenless Zone Zerostill being in the early months of its life, it still has a lot of time to expand its roster. As new game modes, bosses, and story chapters are introduced to the game, it’s likely that more diverse agent attributes and specialty combinations will become necessary. With this in mind, this imbalance of combinations probably won’t remain an issue for very long.
