"The Night Before Christmas": How We Racked Up 9 Million Views on Our Holiday Zenless Zone Zero Show
In December 2024, right before the massive Zenless Zone Zero 1.4 update, we decided to throw a real celebration for the community — a warm, lively show packed with familiar faces, humor, and surprises. That’s how The Night Before Christmas was born: a two-hour programme that was streamed simultaneously across seven popular channels and went on to rack up over 9 million total campaign views. And judging by the feedback — 99.5% positive — we managed to give viewers exactly that magical feeling they were hoping for from the holiday update.
Why a show instead of a regular livestream
Version 1.4 was a big deal. New characters — Miyabi and Asaba — were joining the roster, and we wanted to build a story around them. At the same time, we knew a standard patch overview stream could feel a bit dry. So we chose a pre-recorded show format with interactive elements woven in. That gave us full control over visuals, editing, and special effects, while still creating the illusion of a live broadcast so viewers would feel genuinely involved. The shoot took place in Saint Petersburg on December 12, and the cast brought together popular gamers, streamers, cosplayers, and content creators.
Crafting the magic: from script to set design
The first thing we did was come up with a thread that would run through the entire show. It opened with an animated intro styled after the game’s own comic-book cutscenes, explaining how our guests (dressed as in-game characters) accidentally found themselves inside the world of ZZZ. The intro was drawn and animated specifically for this project and voiced by the Pancakeser team, who are well-known in the local community. That set the tone right away — viewers understood they weren’t in for a dry chat but a genuine adventure. The real star of the opening, however, was Fairy, the AI from the ZZZ universe. In our script she broke the fourth wall, cracked jokes about what was happening, and even “predicted” the chat’s reactions. The audience loved it — that kind of self-aware humor from a brand is something people always hope for but rarely get.
Interactive elements that actually work: the secret key and the Telegram bot
To keep attention locked in for two hours, we created a secret-key mechanic. At several points during the show, fragments of a code appeared on screen, and viewers had to piece them all together. To collect the keys and run the grand-prize draw, we built a dedicated Telegram bot. Entry required a subscription to the official ZZZ community, which brought hundreds of new followers into the group. Around 2,000 people took part in the giveaway. And even though the show was pre-recorded, we didn’t leave viewers without a feedback loop: their chat comments popped up on screen in real time. That made it feel fully live and got people typing even more actively.
Expanding the reach: seven channels and laser-focused collaborations
The broadcast went out simultaneously on seven popular channels, letting us cover the widest possible audience and giving viewers the freedom to watch wherever they preferred. Two top streamers — Vika Carter and Ork Podcaster — recorded exclusive New Year’s greetings for the players. A personal address from beloved influencers always lands warmer than a standard promo clip. We also brought on board popular artist Alexa, who created a stunning piece of artwork featuring the new character Miyabi and shared it completely free across her social media, shining an extra light on the show. A collaboration driven by pure enthusiasm like that is worth its weight in gold — it proved we were genuinely doing something that mattered to the community.
Promotion and results
The campaign was supported by 91 social media posts, teasers from cosplayers who transformed into Miyabi and Asaba, and posts from everyone who took part in the show. In the end, total campaign reach surpassed 9,000,000 views. The audience’s reaction is our proudest achievement — 99.5% positive feedback is proof that the format we chose truly hit home. We managed to bottle the sincerity of the dev team, the creativity of influencers, and that signature in-game magic all at once.
