◤Developer Note: Preseason Preview◢
Zero Out All Despair!
Hello. This is theChaos Zero Nightmare Team.
First, we would like to sincerely apologize for not providing sufficient content to Protos during the previous preseason period. We deeply empathize with the concerns and disappointment that the lack of content reduced your motivation to continue playing, and we take this responsibility very seriously.
To ensure the preseason feels more engaging instead of a gap between major updates, we are preparing a comprehensive overhaul of the gameplay experience and would like to provide advance notice through this developer note.
1. New Content: “Full-Scale Offensive” Update
The new content “Full-Scale Offensive,” will be added, featuring gameplay similar to the Great Rift with limitless combinations.
Full-Scale Offensive will run in 6-week cycles, and each season will feature three past Great Rift bosses. 
You will form a total of three parties, one for each boss.Once a Combatant is deployed in battle, they cannot be assigned to another party.
Therefore, achieving high scores will require strategically building and deploying nine Combatants.
The reward structure will also change from the existing Great Rift’s “cumulative damage” system to a “score”-based system.
In addition to scores based on base damage, extra points can be earned by successfully executing each boss’s bonus mechanics.
The key feature of Full-Scale Offensive is that all Save Data accumulated from past seasons can be used without seasonal restrictions.
Through this, we aim to support strategies that differ from the regular season format and enable a wider variety of deck combinations.
Furthermore, as noted in our previous Developer Note, we’re working on easing the seasonal restrictions on Great Rift Save Data. We’ll provide an update in a future Developer Note once finalized.
2. Early Access to Next Season Power and Save Data Carryover
We intend to fundamentally improve the current structure where Save Data acquired during the preseason loses its value when a new season begins.
During the preseason, you’ll be able to try out part of the upcoming season’s new Season Power in advance. 
In Season 3, each Combatant will be able to obtain 1 special Persona card.
Through Engravings, these cards will be able to grow stronger, and can be completed by continuously adding enhancement effects acquired through battles and exploration.
By clearing ‘Persona Battle Areas’ which host Rare Species, you will be able to acquire both Persona Cards and Engraving effects during your Chaos exploration.
Some effects can scale with the total number of Engravings you own, and you will be able to further increase the strength of your Persona Cards’ Engraving effects by acquiring Engraved equipment that you can find from Waypoints and Unidentified Areas.
During the pre-season, a new option will also be available whenever you reach a Waypoint that allows you to apply an Engraving to an equipment that you already own, and in the coming Season 3 Chaos, you will be able to acquire Engraved equipment by visiting Unidentified Areas.
In addition, Save Data obtained during this period will be carried over into the new season.
This will allow Protos to preview the next season’s meta in advance during the preseason, experiment with various decks, and prepare powerful Save Data that can be used immediately at the start of the regular season.
3. Combat Balance Adjustments
As previously mentioned, we will continue to carry out combat balance adjustments to expand deck diversity by increasing the usability of underperforming Combatants and certain less frequently used cards.
The core of this balance patch is the adjustment of Ego Manifestation effects for certain Combatants, including “Yuki,” along with a major overhaul of the Partner system.
First, regarding Combatant balance improvements. Through the previous patch, we confirmed that overall metrics for low-usage Combatants have improved. However, continued data analysis showed that Yuki still falls short in terms of usability and gameplay feel As a result, we have decided to prioritize adjustments for her in this patch. Going forward, we will continue refining Combatants that still show usability issues in battle, so they can fully demonstrate their intended appeal and performance.
As part of this upward balance direction, Ego Manifestation effects for some Combatants will also be adjusted. Currently, some Combatants’ Ego Manifestation effects are underperforming when compared to the average, , which limits the feeling of progression for players. Accordingly, we will adjust values to improve overall efficiency and make Combatant growth more meaningful.
Lastly, major improvements will also be applied to the Partner system, a core component of combat.
- Stat Application Method Change : Previously, Partner stats were not reflected when calculating Memory Fragment % options. This will be improved so that Partner stats are now fully applied. This change will allow Partners to play a more central role in deck building and combat.
- Enhanced Growth Impact : The increase in base stats gained when leveling up Partners will be raised to enhance the value of character growth.
- 5★ Partner Buff : Stat increases gained through passives will be significantly increased so that performance clearly reflects the highest grade.
* Partner Balance Adjustments: Scheduled for the April 8 update
* Combatant Balance Adjustments: Scheduled for the April 29 update
To present a completely revamped Chaos Zero Nightmare at the upcoming Half Anniversary, the entire development team is working hard to prepare for this update.
We look forward to your continued interest and support.
We hope the preseason allows you to experience the upcoming changes and prepare ahead of the regular season. With that, we’ll wrap up this developer note.
We will continue striving to make Chaos Zero Nightmare a better experience for all.
Chaos Zero Nightmare Development Team.
