Summary
As the newest game to be released by HoYoverse,Zenless Zone Zerooperates on a gacha model that can be somewhat confusing to parse for newer players. Like the studio’s two most recent games,Genshin ImpactandHonkai: Star Rail, players can use in-game currencies to pull for characters and weapons, some of which are only available for limited periods of time. Without knowing the odds, however, it can be difficult to figure out how much to potentially save for upcoming banners.
WithGenshinandHonkai: Star Rail, HoYoverse games have seemingly settled into a mostly standardized gacha system, andZenless Zone Zero’s gacha grindis shaping up to be very similar, even while the game’s moment-to-moment action takes some notable departures from its predecessors. For players not already familiarized with the gacha system through one of HoYoverse’s previous games, though, it can be difficult to figure out exactly how the percentages work out - not helped by a few obfuscated mechanics that aren’t given proper explanation.
Zenless Zone Zero Preview: Ambitious, Chill Gameplay With Immaculate Vibes
Zenless Zone Zero is both the most ambitious and chill effort from HoYoverse yet, a delightful blend of urban fantasy and high octane combat.
How Pull Rates In Zenless Zone Zero Work
ZZZ Has Low Rates Supported By A Few Guarantees
LikeHonkai: Star RailandGenshin Impactbefore it,Zenless Zone Zerohas its banners work on a chance-based system with a few sources of guaranteed rewardsto mitigate the impact of bad luck. Items obtainable through pulling on banners come in three rarities - B-rank, A-rank, and S-rank, with S-rank being the rarest.B-rank items, which only include Bangboos (assist characters) and W-Engines (weapons), serve as the default reward for pulling, and will therefore show up on the majority of pulls.
A-rank and S-rank items, on the other hand, have a much smaller chanceof showing up on any given pull - by default,the odds for each are 7.2% for A-ranks and 0.6% for S-ranks. Additionally, the odds of getting specific rewards can differ depending on which banner is being pulled. The permanently available standard banner, for example, gives all characters and weapons of certain rarities an equal chance of showing up, so no single character or weapon is more likely to appear than another. Limited banners, on the other hand, offer exclusive rewards with the odds weighted towards them.
Zenless Zone Zero - Release Date, Platforms, & Confirmed Characters
The release of HoYoverse’s next action RPG, Zenless Zone Zero, is imminent. Here’s what you need to know ahead of its arrival this July.
While limited banners give the same odds for pulling items of specific ranks, there are noticeable differences once those items have been pulled. Most notably, a limited banner featuring a specific S-rank reward gives players a percentage chance of pulling that reward - 50% for limited character banners, and 75% for weapons. Moreover,if a player fails to get the featured item the first time they pull an S-rank on a limited banner, they’re guaranteed to get it the next time. The only exception to this rule is the Bangboo banner, which allows players to guarantee specific S-ranks.
The odds for featured A-ranks on limited banners work similarly -the first time an A-rank is pulled on a limited banner (which is guaranteed every 10 pulls), there’s a 50% chance of it being one of the featured A-rank items. If it wasn’t a featured item, the next A-rank pull is guaranteed to be a featured item.
If an S-rank or A-rank reward isn’t featured on a banner, it’s selected randomly from the standard banner rewards.
How Pity Affects The Odds In ZZZ
Soft Pity Is A Hidden Mechanic That Affects Pull Rates
While the odds of getting rewards for any given rarity are mostly static and consistent,ZenlessZone Zerocarries over a hidden mechanicpresent in bothGenshin ImpactandHonkai: Star Rail: soft pity. Whereas most of the game’s pity mechanics are clearly stated - guaranteeing an A-rank every 10 pulls, and an S-rank every 80 or 90 pulls, depending on banner choice - soft pity is more hidden, kicking in at around 75 pulls on a banner without receiving an S-rank.
Starting at around the 75th pull, the chances of receiving an S-rank reward increase dramatically, greatly reducing the chances of players hitting the “hard” pity cap on a given banner. This increase isn’t documented in-game, so no official numbers have been revealed, but player estimates place the increase at around an additional 7% per pull. While these numbers are suspect, as there’s never been a direct, official acknowledgment of the soft pity mechanic, the system makes it relatively unlikely for players to have to hit 90 pulls to actually get an S-rank reward.
Although pull rates in games likeZenless Zone Zeroare mostly straightforward, hidden mechanics like soft pity can obfuscate how likely players actually are to receive rewards within a certain number of pulls. While the hidden systems are to the player’s benefit, it can still be helpful to know about them when deciding how much to spend or save on any given banner inZenless Zone Zero.
