Ananta vs Zenless Zone Zero

Ananta and Zenless Zone Zero are both free-to-play urban action games with anime-styled casts on PC, PS5, iOS and Android, but Zenless Zone Zero, out since Jul 4, 2024, sells its characters on gacha banners with a 90-pull pity, while Ananta, launching Jan 15, 2027, is an open world with cars and character switching in which every playable character is earned in play.

Ananta differs from Zenless Zone Zero in the two things players ask about most: it has no character gacha, and it is a full open world you drive, swing and walk across, where HoYoverse's game sells its characters on banners. Both are free-to-play action games with anime-styled casts set in modern cities, both are on PC, PlayStation 5, iOS and Android, and both fight supernatural trouble in the streets. Zenless Zone Zero has been out since Jul 4, 2024; Ananta, from NetEase Games and Naked Rain, launches on Jan 15, 2027. This page compares what each maker has said, as of Nov 1, 2026. The game itself is on Ananta.

Quick facts

Release	Zenless Zone Zero: Jul 4, 2024. Ananta: Jan 15, 2027
Makers	Zenless Zone Zero: HoYoverse. Ananta: Naked Rain, published by NetEase Games
Platforms	Both on PC, PS5, iOS and Android
Price	Both free to play
Characters	Zenless Zone Zero: gacha banners, an S-rank guaranteed every 90 pulls with a 50% chance it is the featured one. Ananta: no character gacha
World	Zenless Zone Zero: an "urban fantasy action RPG" (TouchArcade). Ananta: an open world of two cities, with cars, subway, yachts and swinging
Cross-play and cross-save	Zenless Zone Zero: both, across every platform, from launch. Ananta: not announced (Nov 1, 2026)
Character switching	Ananta: switch to any team member in the open world, each with a life of their own

Is Ananta a gacha game like Zenless Zone Zero?

No. Zenless Zone Zero sells its characters on banners: an S-rank is guaranteed every 90 pulls, the odds rise after 75, and an S-rank from a limited banner has a 50% chance of being the featured character, with the next one guaranteed if it is not (Pocket Tactics, updated Oct 20, 2026). Push Square's headline at its launch called it "HoYoverse's next huge gacha". Ananta's producers have said since Sep 2025 that every playable character joins through the story, side quests and friendship, and that paid content is outfits, skins and other cosmetics (How to Get Characters).

Ananta still has some chance-based buying. Steam lists "Chance based in-game purchases", the App Store "Loot Boxes" and Google Play "In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)" (read Nov 1, 2026), and NetEase has not said which items those are (Monetization).

Is Ananta open world like Zenless Zone Zero?

Ananta is the more open of the two by what NetEase has shown. Its Steam page promises "If you can see it, you can go there", with interiors on three layers, rooftops, mid-levels and ground floors, two cities at launch, Nova City and Chongxiao, and travel by car, motorcycle, helicopter, yacht, subway, hang glider and swinging (Map and Cities, Traversal). Between missions you can work out at a gym, eat, shop, race cars or carry a cat around (City Life and Activities). You can also switch to any team member in the open world, and the one you switch to is somewhere else in the city doing something of their own (Character Switching and Jobs).

How does the combat compare?

Both are fast, flashy brawlers. Ananta's fights are hand-to-hand in the street, with counters and grabs, a bat, a golf club or a tennis racket picked up from the scene, guns, telekinesis, and each character's own attacks, such as Taffy throwing her motorbike; previewers compare it with Batman: Arkham, Sleeping Dogs and Sifu (Combat). Its supernatural enemies are Chaos, beings born from human imagination (Chaos).

Can you carry your progress between devices?

In Zenless Zone Zero, yes: HoYoverse confirmed cross-progression and cross-play across all platforms at launch (TouchArcade, May 28, 2024). For Ananta, NetEase has not said, as of Nov 1, 2026; what is known is on Crossplay and Cross-Save.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ananta like Zenless Zone Zero? Both are free-to-play urban action games with anime-styled casts on PC, PS5, iOS and Android. Ananta differs in being a driveable open world of two cities and in having no character gacha, while Zenless Zone Zero sells its characters on banners.

Is Ananta made by HoYoverse? No. Ananta is made by Naked Rain, a NetEase studio with teams in Hangzhou and Montreal, and published by NetEase Games; Zenless Zone Zero is HoYoverse's.

Does Ananta have a pity system? Ananta has no character gacha, so there are no character banners and no pity to track. NetEase has not said how the random paid items its store listings mention will work, as of Nov 1, 2026.

Is Ananta out yet like Zenless Zone Zero? No. Zenless Zone Zero came out on Jul 4, 2024, and Ananta launches worldwide on Jan 15, 2027.

Does Ananta have cross-save like Zenless Zone Zero? Not announced. Zenless Zone Zero has had cross-progression on every platform since launch, while NetEase has said nothing about cross-save for Ananta as of Nov 1, 2026.