Michael Beckwith 
ZZZ has laid out its plan for both the 1.1 and 1.2 updates, and they’re set to make fundamental changes to the game in response to fan feedback of the game’s opening weeks.
The newest free-to-play action RPG from miHoYo, Zenless Zone Zero, has been a certified hit since its July 4 release, reportedly making over $50 million in its first 11 days, per AppMagic. Despite its popularity, there is plenty of room for improvement, and miHoYo already has a lengthy list of ideas for improving the user experience. The company spelled out some of those ideas in teases for the next two updates.
This is on top of a slew of new playable characters who will hopefully arrive in the coming months, like the mysterious Jane Doe. Starting today, players can also pull for new S-Rank agent Zhu Yuan, who will be available until August 13.
What is included in the ZZZ 1.1 update?
Zenless Zone Zero’s 1.1 update is expected to arrive on August 14 and perhaps its biggest inclusion will be an option for manual chain attacks. This means is stunning enemies will no longer automatically trigger chain attacks, allowing players to keep attacking with their current character or manually switch to another to keep up a combo.
The option to toggle on manual chain attacks will be available in the squad lineup menu before starting combat, but it will be possible to cancel chain attack combos as well. This news was welcomed by early adopters and will give greater control to players in battle. Version 1.1 also promises more challenging combat missions for anyone who may be finding the game too easy, but the majority of this update will be spent on optimizing the overall experience.
For example, the display for enemies’ attribute weaknesses has been improved in the Shiyu Defense mode, making it easier to tell which agents to select. Mobile players will be able to customize certain buttons for the combat UI to better suit their playstyle.
What is included in the Zenless Zone Zero 1.2 update?
ZZZ’s update 1.2 will add the Fairy Assistance feature for acquiring lost commission rewards and various quality-of-life improvements.
Unlike ZZZ 1.1, the 1.2 update lacks an exact release date date. Regardless, miHoYo already has revealed a number of important optimizations planned. For starters, the automatic accelerated playback during Monitor Array sections will no longer be interrupted by other events. The animation playback speed for certain events will also be increased. Altogether, this should make grinding sessions a lot quicker and less of a chore to get through.
Additionally, a Fairy Assistance feature will let players acquire commission rewards they missed during story missions after meeting certain requirements. Improvements to agent training, like repeated combat missions, will make it easier for players to familiarize themselves with each character’s unique control scheme.
One especially welcome quality-of-life improvement will be the option to manually select the in-game time. As it stands, the in-game time of day will automatically progress as players complete missions and the like, but some tasks and side activities like Trust Events and Hangouts can only be done during specific times. Being able to freely choose whether it’s day or night means players won’t have to wait for the in-game time to cycle back around.
The Zenless Zone Zero Twitter account has also pledged further additions for future updates, like the option to play as any unlocked agent in the hub world, alongside general visual improvements. However, there’s no telling when these will be available for the game.
ZZZ 1.1 update release date confirmed
Zenless Zone Zero’s 1.1 update will be released on August 14.
While the biggest changes are arguably the gameplay shakeups, there are set to be the various crowd-pleasing additions to the game. Foremost among them is the new agent Jane Doe. This will be the first major update of many for Zenless Zone Zero, so new fans of the game should buckle in for a long ride.
