Zenless Zone Zero – How to fix black background error in ZZZ

Zenless Zone Zero made a huge splash of color in The Game Awards in 2023, so it’s pretty surprising to see your character now surrounded by a totally dark and gloomy background.

I bet you’re here because you’re trying to play Zenless Zone Zero on your mobile. Even though the cutscenes look great and the characters and enemies show up fine, it seems like your device forgot one important thing: the background. You probably don’t remember New Eridu looking so dull in the trailers. So, where did all the colors go? In this guide, I’ll explain why you’re seeing a black environment bug in ZZZ and how you can fix it.

How to fix black environment bug in Zenless Zone Zero

To fix the black background error in Zenless Zone Zero, make sure the app or software is fully updated in the App Store and consult the list of compatible devices.

This is a compatibility issue. Zenless Zone Zero seems to be highly incompatible with a wide range of mobile devices, regardless of whether they’re Android or iOS. When the game originally launched, App Store and Play Store made ZZZ available to all devices independently of their specs. That means you might have been able to download it and open it without issue.

That said, if you check the App Store or Play Store right now and your device is incompatible, it displays a red warning that reads “The app is no longer compatible with your device. Contact the developers for more info.”

HoyoVerse’s customer service has mentioned a few times that if you’re seeing a “black environment” or “black background,” it likely means your device isn’t compatible with Zenless Zone Zero‘s specs. In all fairness, it’s not an easy game to run at all. For a comprehensive list of the specs required to run Zenless Zone Zero, consult HoyoVerse’s official publication of Pre-Download requirements.

A similar issue cropped up when Honkai: Star Rail was released in 2023. Many players faced black, unintelligible backgrounds, making the game unplayable. This was eventually fixed with the Compatibility Mode introduced in a later patch. HoyoVerse will likely take a similar approach with Zenless Zone Zero.

If the App Store or Play Store says your device is incompatible, your best bet to fix the black environment issue is to either try a different device (or platform) or wait for HoyoVerse to release a Compatibility Mode patch.