On January 10, 2025, HoYoverse hosted a stream where they talked about the upcoming update 1.5 for Zenless Zone Zero. It all started at 14:30 Moscow time, and you could watch it on YouTube and Twitch. If you missed it, now is the time to catch up, because there was a lot of interesting stuff!
The developers showed what awaits us in the new version. The focus was on the faction “Constellation Lyra”. It includes the singer/actress Astra Yao and her equally impressive bodyguard Evelyn Chevalier. We were shown their abilities, mechanics and pieces of story quests.
Quests
Update 1.5 will add two new story episodes. The first of them is “Astra-nomical Moment“, dedicated to Astra Yao. This will be an intense story in which players will get to know the talented girl better and learn about the background of her brilliant career. Judging by the title, something dramatic is planned, but not without the star shine and signature ZZZ humor.
The second episode – “The Sorrows of Young Ellen, which will focus on Ellen Jo's story. This episode promises to dive into her lore, and judging by the opening art, we may get to meet the shark's family. For Ellen fans, this is a great opportunity to get to know her from a new side.
Character and Amplifier Banners
Update 1.5 will bring new banners that will surely interest hunters of cool characters and amplifiers.
Characters
First half of the update:
S-rank: Astra Yao (Ether, support) and Ellen Jo (Ice, attack)
A-rank: Enbi (Electro, intimidation) and Korin (Physical, attack)
Second half of the update:
S-rank: Evelyn Chevalier (Fire, attack) and Qingyi (Electro, intimidation)
A-rank: Anton (Electro, attack) and Nicole (Ether, support)
Each of these heroes has unique abilities, and their mechanics will fit perfectly into a variety of combat strategies.
Amplifiers
First half of the update:
- S-rank: Stylish Thing and Guest from the Depths
- A-rank: Demara Battery II, Housekeeper, and other A-rank amplifiers
Second half of the update:
- S-rank: Strings of Night and Teapot of Jade Purity
- A-rank: Red Axle Drill, Treasure Chest and other A-rank amplifiers
Promo code
A bonus for viewers of the stream was a promo code for 300 Polychromes: ASTRANOMICAL. It must be activated on the official website or through the game (Esc → More → Promo code) before 19:00 Moscow time on January 11.
Banbu
In the Banbu banner, you can knock out a new eared Clicker — an S-rank camera man. This combat reporter doesn't just take pictures, he flashes them so that enemies take solid damage.
Events
In honor of the Chinese New Year, HoYovese got generous and rolled out 4 events at once with rewards for entering the game, in total we will receive:
- 480 Polychromes
- 20 Cipher Copies
- 10 Banbulets
Event “Star Hour»: there is a banbu contest called “En-nuta of Fame”. The task is to help Eos become the goddess of beauty. To do this, you need to choose a stylish outfit, combine the images correctly and make Eos take a winning pose so that he outshines all rivals.
The “Ultimate Angler” tournament starts in the port of Elpis. Here, participants will compete in fishing, proving who is the best fisherman in New Eris.
The City Video Game Festival is a great reason to play arcades! You can get coupons by playing the machines. A new game called “25 Machs” will be added to “Godfinger”, where you will find dynamic races with different types of transport.
Multiplayer mode “Fellow Travelers in a Nightmare». Not far from «Godfinger», in 1.5 we are waiting for a new event for «Roaming Brigade». You will have to play in pairs, without the ability to choose the difficulty. But all the coins collected in battle go to the common treasury. The update will feature seven new dream seekers, including Wise, Belle and «Sly Hares».
«Infinity Tower: Exodus» is a new mode of virtual combat testing. Here you will have to go through floors of 10 levels with unique effects in each battle. Before the battles, you choose one of three modifiers, they can both strengthen and weaken you.
In the event «Photo Hunt Chick-Click» a girl named Sheila will ask a proxy to fix her unusual camera. The problem is that to do this, you will have to take pictures right in the middle of a battle in the caverns.
Skins
And that's not all, now the game will have skins! Ellen, Astra Yao, and Nicole are the first agents in ZZZ to get alternative outfits. The skins will appear in the in-game store “Look of the Day.” But Nicole's costume can be temporarily snatched for free if you take part in the “Star Hour” event.
System improvements
- Live wallpapers are now even cooler!We've added two new categories: “Partner Dossier” and “Reed in the Frame”. And there's also a random playback mode – choose several wallpapers, and they'll change on their own.
- Titles and medals.It's now easier to get titles, and custom titles and medals will be displayed in a convenient format.
- The hunt will be less merciless.Elite enemy waves have been removed from the Ruthless Hunt levels, making missions quicker and easier to complete.
- Custom Training Plans. The ability to create your own plans has been added to the training system. No longer do you have to rely solely on recommendations, create your own schedule.
- Drive Discs. Now, at the Regular Clearing levels, you can immediately see which drive disks you can get. Sorting and filtering have also become more convenient, and on the summary screen, you can now study the details of the obtained disks and even add tags.
New characters
In the teasers on the stream, you could notice a couple of characters that stand out from the NPCs. Perhaps HoYoverse is quietly teasing us new characters. We expect more information from insiders in the near future.
Update 1.5 itself is released January 22, 2025. We are promised a lot of new content, fresh mechanics and even more interesting things in New Eris. So get ready, it will be fun!
