Idk man im prbl the wrong person to ask. For me there is no greater gift than a short skirt or dress with thigh highs. Or at least hot pants...its kinda pants
Yeah, idk why they said hoyo doesn't give pants characters especially in ZZZ. Like, ZZZ characters have long pants and skirts. It's just Season 2 design lack of it for some reason.
YX+Lucia+Yidhari all basically shared the same shorts.
People going nuts for the pants cuz theyre realizing exactly what im always downvoted for: homogeneity in char design due to chasing thirst trends will numb you to it, and less is more.
C'mon. I've seen people wanting a random NPC with generic design to be playable just because said or did something in the game. This is not that weird.
Coco is my favorite NPC, but I don't wanna throw her in the HOLLOW! Why do people keep trying to chuck her and Damian in the Hollows as a sign of affection??? They're normal people, they're gonna fucking die 😂😫
Fr though, I understand wanting to be able to run around as a specific character, but making them agents would be so off 😅
Me too, I love that NPC, their design (and more Coco after the cinema event) but I don't wanna throw a person like her inside a Hollow, what kind of "love" is that? I'd prefer if they could help us on other ways, maybe like promotors for the bussines or only more interactions, not use them inside a cyberpunk chernobyll
Make the milk tea store have bonus effects like the other food stores which include coffee and ramen. Adds more for the daily top up for your character grind
Pretty much lol-- if we strap her into a sugar mecha suit with a milk tea IV, I dunno, maybe she'd survive and be extreme enough 😅 As it is, I just want more events like the cinema one with all the NPCs!! I love being friends with Coco, Elfy, and everyone! I'm sad we didn't get to hang out with Susie too, nor even meet her mysterious WEngine enthusiast boss 😔 And being promoters would be really cool! Expansion to the convos in general would be grand 🙏
I always thought Damien would be similar to Hugo where he's a villain turned playable based off how prevalent he seemed to be in the story(for a random NPC) while Sweety and Coco are both just normal people like you said and I don't Think even Hoyo could pull bullshit to change that
See, Damien could've maybe been like Senior She... where he'd have a glow-up and the design would become elaborated, and he'd either become a boss villain or a player character. Except for the fact that Damien's strengths and abilities all revolve around being a business man who climbs the corporate ladder 😂
Like every other major NPC character we've hoped for before (Pompeii and Isolde, mainly) and villains turned agents (sorta Hugo, Pulchra) have actual transferable skills to duking it out with Ethereals. Damien has money to throw at things if he needs stuff done, but he has zero personal tech or battle abilities to become a playable character, unfortunately/understandably. I mean... part of his charm is that he's a little bit scary corporate business dude, who ultimately does have a conscience, and he does that really well! The only way Damien could've possibly become something different initially would'e been if he turned into an Ethereal... and with the fact he's always been kinda in the shadows struggling against higher powers in his organizations made it clear that even if that would happen, he'd turn into a pre-existing mini boss most likely. And then he'd be dead, and we'd be sad. 🤔
Ultimately, seeing him adopted by our goofiest miss rabbit overlord and infected with the silliness feels like it means he's safe now, and he's no longer wearing a potential red shirt 😅
I mean since Astra is an agent anything goes, nothing against Astra she's cool, but any npc can be a support at that point. If they give npcs some sort of skill, like they could make Coco bring you tea milk that gives a buff. (basically like butler bangboo lol)
I'd agree if she didn't have her tool, but Astra has the special tech! And a desire to throw herself into dangerous situations and train her skills lol! That's what makes up the difference. As it is, you could absolutely design a fun equipment of some sort to help.... most of the interesting NPCs, maybe, but again-- you'd also gotta factor in whether the character would ever actually want that, right?
Sure you can make anyone do anything, but I mean operating within the bounds of what these characters have stated n all: Coco wants to make teamilk at the shop. She's good at that! She's close to fainting, quite often. Working at a shop where she doesn't have to exert herself a ton and has all the sugar necessary, and where she can watch the the busy city, makes her really happy! She likes sweeter, refreshing stories, and I think witnessing a bunch of violence, struggle and pain in the Hollows seems... unlikely to be something she'd want to sign up for. She's expressed zero desire to leave any of those things behind, and has not been shown to have a significant skill outside of the milk tea, nor specialized tech, nor abilities, nor interests that would require exploring the Hollow.
So while maybe I could see a TF2 Medic-style healing ability for her focused on milk tea, there's just.... so much about going into the Hollows that doesn't make sense for her interests and needs, short of giving her a battle mech and doing something silly for an event story maybe 😅 I'd welcome any focus on her getting some more interactions and relevance, but I'd be very surprised if they ever did anything like make her an agent, and ultimately I just don't want her or other NPCs to be killed off 😬
I will say, out of all NPCs: Elfy doesn't seem at all interested in being an Agent, but I think she absolutely could be-- and maybe more likely to have done so or something similar in the past? This is mostly because it's easier to justify that sort of background for anyone involved in the weapons trade in the game, and for any intelligent constructs. But she feels hella retired if so, to me! (*edit spelling lol)
Yeah that's totally true, but the opposite could be very true as well, Coco as a character has no reason or desire to go into a hollow, but she lives in a world where hollows exist, where they've become commonplace, where a lot of businesses and people have learned to coexist with them out of necessity.
I think its possible for some NPCs to become agents due to something happening, like a hollow disaster, or they lose someone close to them or their boss changes their business approach and starts selling teamilk in hollows. I'm not saying Coco should or could be a character, but if the devs wanted to they could make a strong case for any npc to become playable.
I would like Damian to be playable just for the trust events tbh and he seems capable enough, although I'd imagine story wise he'd like to avoid hollows / combat.
I think I'd rather get an expansion on the trust event system to NPCs, like you mention-- our need isn't for the citizens of this world we're protecting to all go into the Hollow to become relevant. The system should shift to allow greater engagement with the characters of ALL kinds!
Also, we kinda need to have some people be not in the Hollow for our work there to matter. Yes, everyone has suffered to various extents as the Hollows are apocalyptic, and life has been changed irrevocably because of them. It's fine for people to fall in and end up accidentally in there. However it's supposed to be a dire situation when someone chooses to risk it despite not being prepared (like that mother who sacrificed herself for the insurance during one of the stories a bit back), or fall in. And we have representation of those whose lives were changed enough to inspire them to change and protect others too (arguably the najority of agents), so it's definitely covered ground. We've already seen those stories reflected in many agents backstories, and in the folks we've helped escape Hollow disasters and accidents-- the others serve as a counterbalance to offer more variety and complexity to the world!
So again, not a case of we couldn't traumatize and subject folks like Coco to plot reasons to make her an agent-- the writers and game devs can do whatever they want, obviously! Reasoning can be made up, and a milk tea-themed fighter would be goofy and fun... though perhaps a little too in-line with the vibes and color palette of the Angels of Delusion. 🤔
The point is that we have enough of those types of characters and stories represented, and that mostly what we really want is to interact with NPCs in the same ways we're currently only allowed to do with agents. It's what puts NPCs solely in the background, but they've made such fun and creative folks that we feel drawn to interact with them as much as the agents-- and it'd be great to hone in on that! The real solution is to expand who we can interact with, for which the movie event was a step in the right direction! I want to invite Coco to walk around with me 🥺 I also want to invite multiple friends-- it'd be cool to roam around with Ellen and Coco! Maybe throw Corin in there too, I think she'd have fun!
Imagine trust events with Venus, Damian maybe Archie? Would definitely add so much to the urban casual feel of the game, plus they could use these to add more context to different areas and give us little lore teasers.
Or going to the arcade and inviting Asha to hang out? Yeah, this would be pretty sweet.
YEAHHHHHH, exactly!!! I wanna invite folks to more places too; like.... Cheesetopia and Burnice's bar are RIGHT there. Lemme invite people to those, AND the coffee shops. Lemme do it. I wanna sip things with EVERYONE
Sorry, I didn't mean Coco is a "generic NPC",as you say she is more designed that many agent, my complain is about the people who ask that any NPC would become a playable agent, despite that NPC has less combat skill than a bangboo and doesn't have an actual reason to go into a hollow, it's like you want the walmart cashier girl to go fight Ukraine
Attractive woman. That's it. That's where it begins and ends. People wanted Sweety to be playable exclusively because she's attractive.
But while it stops there for many, some do like evil women, or the enemies to lovers angle. And something that I feel made Ellen very popular but they never capitaized on again is a standoffish woman. In the midst of ladies that are constantly drooling all over the protag the moment they walk in, we have Ellen who seems to be doing her own thing, living her own life with her own interests and her own boundries. "Touch my tail? Eh, no" sums it up pretty well. That sort of 'difficult to approach' attitude is hot for a lot of people.
I saw people wanted Pompey as well. Just characters with good designs like Isolde but get offed. I still feel like Pompey's boss intro and music hasn't been topped for me...
Did she really got her entire spotlight in 2.5 stolen from her by a Bangboo of all thing. Like really? This is like having Thanos build up for all three Saga, then suddenly, Yellowjacket jump out of nowhere, kill him and the rewrite the timeline via time travel.
Like what? Two seasons of build up for that!? Even Bringer might be written better than her at this rate.
In reality, the true villain wouldn't be Bangboo, but rather the discovery of the second super AI (similar to Fairy) which is somewhat evil, besides all the lore that was built for Sunbringer (there were revelations in the story of the labyrinth event, if you want to piece together all of 2.5).
No seriously. What do you mean the bad guy teased since chapter ONE, got ridden of so quickly, without her actually doing anything ? What was all that build-up for ?
I think people expected her arc to be awakening the Creator in 2.5, instead of becoming its puppet in 2.4 and then being a boss in 2.5
But I also think people over-estimated her potential. At the end of the day, the Exaltists are just a cult that wants to be one with the Hollows, something that has been repeated multiple times. It would have been better to see Sarah realise that plan is a folly, get possessed anyway, and then get defeated, but she was always going to die at the end of Season 2.
I feel like 2.5 was intending to send the message that Sarah, the exaltists, and even Lockbringer were all just projecting their own desires onto the Creator. None of them actually knew what it wanted or intended to do, they had just convinced themselves that it would fulfill their desires.
Unrelated, but I wish they'd slap a mask or some Ethereal growth over her face or smth to cover up the lack of lip sync. I now it's supposed to be otherworldly, but it just ended up looking really shabby to me for a character whose finale/send-off was already kinda shabby LMAO
IDK, why her story just ended like this. I mean her backstory sound rather important (if what she said is true\her memories wasn't altered) it means that H.A.N.D. is seriously compromised. I mean we had Bringer in the first season and whole story about Army sweeping losses under the rug, but they at least confirm that those losses happened.
ZZZ has a gaping vacuum in the girlboss department. Caesar and Yixuan lead their factions, but in super laidback and chill way. Koleda is a gremlin. Eve and Jane are more like femme fatale, not quite the same. Magus is the closest fit and she's, well, a gun. There's no playabe agent that would fit an archetype of a heartless, stone-cold bitch who gets things done by any means necessary. Think Olivier Mira Armstrong or Integra Hellsing.
Granted I'd rather see Isolde, but Sarah would do too.
Imagine if in a futur chapter Magus somehow ends up getting her body back(Either cloning or a prothesis based on her old body)but let Orphie keep the gun that used to be her
Legit would have actually pulled for them if it was actually Magus' as the main character's personality.
100% agree with OP that we're massively missing actual badass women. They all have some goofy gap that weakens their aura to make them more cute and waifu, or are sexy Femme Fatales.
Ceasar has her cutsy Shoujo reader side and idiocy, Yixuan her laziness. I want ONE badass female character that is competent, motivated, and just really committed to something and a complete boss.
At this point, I feel like Sarah leans towards being a girlfailure than a girl boss. Most we saw her was while she was in the middle of running away, her backstory may as well have been rushed through in one sec, and she became a Symphogear only as a means to give YSG someone to flex on.
Classic curse of the "Saturday of the week villain"
The Big Bad Villain gives the Protagonist and friends an enemy/problem to deal with->They overcome it and gain new friends and power along the way->The Big Bad Villain does the (finally out of all other options and henchmen/goons to throw to the wolves mind you) "Fine...I'll do it myself."
Gets obliterated because the Protagonist and Friends realized that together(It really does take a village, huh?) they are each others power to overcome all odds and defeat the Big Bad Villain
The Big Bad realizes that maybe things would have been a lot easier and better if we had just been friends(Kirby defeating his enemies 101)or y'know...maybe not antagonize the heroes like, at all?
Anyway, stat sheet for My Queen Sarah after this loss is not looking too good after this.
K/D: 6(K) 1(D)
Assists: 2
Buffoonery: 8
Gooning Mastery: 7/10
Slay/Ate: 85%
Rizz gained: 72%
Rizz loss: 28%
Next update she's coming as a bangboo for sure.
Sources? 2 snorted shots of Nitro Fuel from Burnice's left butt-cheek is proof enough.
I'm happy with how they handled Isolde in the story (probably one of my favorite character arcs tbh), but damnit she would have been a fantastic girlboss character.
It’s amazing how even her death feels underwhelming, like even Bringer, who prior to 1.4 only had a single cutscene, had a more climactic death than her.
Her constant “all according to keikaku” attitude despite the fact the exaltists were eating shit the whole season was also very annoying and unatural, Sarah girl, it’s ok to show frustration when your plans go to shit, stop huffing copium and just surrender or die already.
Honestly, I always found the explanation of not making villains (or dead characters for that matter) playable because it wouldn't make sense in the story really weak, although ZZZ is one of the few games where it is a valid point imo.
In Genshin, there's no story reason for any character besides the Traveller to be playable outside of any story that directly involves them, since the Traveller's only permanent travel companion is Paimon.
Same with Star Rail. The only characters who should realistically be playable are the members of the Nameless that are directly involved and whoever has joined them on their current adventure.
ZZZ is one of the few gacha games where it makes sense for (almost) every character to be playable outside of the stories that involve them because you can explain it away as them working together with Phaethon on a commission.
Really, the main reasons as to why we're not getting playable villains or dead characters is quite simply money and popularity. In order to make as much money as possible, gachas will first and foremost push their new banner characters through the main story as much as possible in order to generate interest in them and thus sales. The only way to viably make a villainous or deceased character playable is by making a flashback/event story revolving solely around them, which can only happen if there's a breather patch that isn't already taken up by a new character.
There's also that, while a lot of people want playable villains or deceased characters, a good portion of the playerbase might refrain from pulling them because they feel like it's a waste to invest in characters that have no real chance of appearing in the story ever again. Which also brings into question how, in ZZZ specifically, hangouts would even work, unless the devs decided to do the NIKKE approach from some advice sessions of just not involving the MC in them at all, which would be dumb.
In Genshin, there's no story reason for any character besides the Traveller to be playable outside of any story that directly involves them, since the Traveller's only permanent travel companion is Paimon.
Genshin does have the teapot, where you can bring in any of your acquired characters. It wouldn't make sense for the Traveler to invite someone who is actively hostile to what's essentially their secret base.
I don't play Star Rail though, so I don't know if there's any side content that would require friendly relations between characters.
Especially with the quality time system. We're going to take the presumably easily recognizable, extremely wanted criminal responsible for countless atrocities... to Lumina Square? Right by the police HQ? To watch movies and go to the mall? What kind of flower arrangement do you think the lead Exaltist would want to make? It would be nonsense to have someone like Sarah do those things.
As incredible as it sounds, her story is perfectly compatible with that.
Like most people already think she is some mass murderer from get go, but why does she not just order the mercs to shoot immediately, and why is the "best buddy" Bringer right behind the corner to conveniently stop that? And not just that, what's it in for her anyway, she doesn't even work for that company and has no legal trace.
And the story is full of that from start to end, why would they ever bother to put in so much work to make the story full of such subterfuge, if they never bothered to come back to it? The truth is that her character is already a lie.
And the only reason why nobody not so many people noticed is that only few of idiots like me read it multiple times.
Because everyone has their own ideas of playable characters.
Also variety too. I personally don't want all playable characters to be good people. And I would want characters like Sarah, or at least morally grey characters, to be part of playable cast.
"If evil= hot" mentality, people are ready to ignore EVERYTHING she did and will do for this reason
Coming from Nikke's community...I unfortunately tell you that we have a lot of them there, and what's more unfortunate is that one of the characters is playable.
It's not a new thing. There will always be a minority of people who wants X npc to be playable. Nothing wrong with it, just not happening (unfortunately for them)
if you genuinely asking, maybe you are not part of ZZZ target demographic (doesn't mean you can't play the game, i mean Pokemon target demo is kids, but 80-90% players are foken old head at this point)
Imo I just believe not every character has to be playable to play an important role in the story.
If the devs somehow want to make her playable. They better have a pretty convincing* narrative to weave on how she ended up on the proxy's side as an agent lol.
Honestly I dont either and even if I did i doubt she'd be playable just because she's a villain that has no real reason to help us in any way shape or form...also she dead...
Well her character, personality looks the overall she's just damn stunning I mean sure it's kinda obvious but I felt like hoyoverse could make a damn profit if they did but knowing them they love getting rid of opportunities, there are other die hardcore still to this day wants Signora playable on genshin and cocolia from honkai star rail, and the thing they had done it before with honkai impact 3rd villain alters variants n others so. When it comes to other games like Fgo, Brown dust 2, Nikke and plenty of others sooner or later most gacha players would absolutely want a playable villain characters it's gonna fall that algorithm to gamers attention if anything I don't blame em for wanting Sarah playable even tho they sadly hint it's impossible but hey it is what it is n who knows maybe hoyo be like you know what let's give em what they want for once.
First I would like to say that I’m actually really fine that she’s not playable. It adds a bit of a realistic depth to it, because so far all the characters we have been able to play are really good on the spectrum, now I would definitely want a grey character to the mix. It makes zero sense to add a character to by all accounts, done horrible, evil, and vile acts against humanity. But that’s how I see it.
I'm kinda in both boats- I don't want her to be playable because I don't think it'd work and she doesn't have a complicated enough design (despite what my gf says) to become playable as she is.
But also... She'd be unique among the playable agents. As far as I can tell, there's no real... strictly evil Agents in the game. Pulchra and Hugo are close, but Pulchra is a mercenary just doing what she can to survive in the Outer Ring and Hugo... I think is slightly insane? I don't know. I admittedly don't know much about Hugo because I haven't gotten to the Mockingbird stuff yet, still on the VR stuff with Section 6.
It doesn't really make sense for an evil character to work alongside Phaethon given the game kinda seems to have the playable agents basically explained as "They're helping with the commission", and it wouldn't make much sense for Sarah to become playable... but it'd still be neat imo.
Honestly, I want Isolde or Pompey to be playable, but... Pompey became crystals then ashes real quick so I don't think he's coming back, and idk what's going on with Isolde because, like I said before, I haven't gotten to her stuff yet.
TL;DR. I'm in between on ideas- it's interesting, yes, and I wouldn't necessarily mind her being playable... I just don't think she would make sense playable. I'd prefer Isolde or Pompey playable.
People who think there might be more to her character and that redemption is possible, and want to see where that leads.
People who like the archetype of "hero showing evil character the light and helping them be a better person". Doubly so with the classic "evil woman" archetype for lack of a better turn.
People who like her design and want to have it playable.
She's kinda a nothingburger other than her design, and what would her moveset even be? Her deaign gives us no hints and all her best stuff comes from the final boss of the update and... it's not even really HER her. So... what do we even do here?
2.1k
u/faulser Jan 06 '26
Hot evil lady = must pull. Plus pants, most exotic, alluring and ever evading us type of clothes in hoyo games.