Genshin Impact
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Genshin Impact'' is an
action role-playing game An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre. Definition The games emphasize real-time combat where the player ...
developed and published by miHoYo. It was released for Android, iOS,
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 i ...
, and
Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for se ...
in 2020, on
PlayStation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North ...
in 2021, and is set for release on
Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a tablet that can either be docked for use as a home console or used as a portable device, making it a ...
. The game features an
anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
-style open-world environment and an action-based battle system using elemental magic and character-switching. The game is
free-to-play Free-to-play (F2P or FtP) video games are games that give players access to a significant portion of their content without paying or do not require paying to continue playing. Free-to-play is distinct from traditional commercial software, which ...
and is monetized through gacha game mechanics through which players can obtain new characters and weapons. The base game is expanded regularly through patches using the
games as a service In the video game industry, games as a service (GaaS) represents providing video games or game content on a continuing revenue model, similar to software as a service. Games as a service are ways to monetize video games either after their initi ...
model. ''Genshin Impact'' takes place in the fantasy world of Teyvat, home to seven nations, each of which is tied to a different element and ruled by a different god. The story follows the Traveler, who has traveled across countless worlds with their twin sibling before becoming separated in Teyvat. The Traveler travels in search of the lost sibling with their companion Paimon and becomes involved in the affairs of Teyvat's nations. Development of ''Genshin Impact'' began in 2017. The game generally received positive reviews, with critics praising its combat mechanics and the immersive open world but criticizing its simplistic endgame and monetization model. It had a first-year launch revenue of more than in its first year of release, the highest for any video game, and a revenue of more than .


Gameplay

''Genshin Impact'' is an open-world
action role-playing game An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre. Definition The games emphasize real-time combat where the player ...
that allows the player to control one of four interchangeable characters in a
party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featu ...
. Switching between characters can be done quickly during combat, allowing the player to use several different combinations of skills and attacks. Characters may have their strengths enhanced in various ways, such as increasing a character's level and improving artifacts and the weapons that the character equips. In addition to exploration, the player can attempt various challenges for rewards. Scattered across Teyvat are bosses and challenges that reward highly valuable resources, such as Stormterror and the Electro Hypostasis, but claiming them uses up a currency called resin, which slowly regenerates over time. Completing these challenges grants the player progress towards increasing their Adventure Rank, which in turn unlocks new quests, challenges, and raises the World Level. The World Level is a measure of how strong the enemies within the world are and the rarity of rewards that defeating them gives. The player can control their character and perform actions such as running, climbing, swimming, and gliding, limited by stamina. Some characters possess abilities that can alter the environment, such as freezing water, to create an ice path that can aid the player in traversing terrain. Many teleportation nodes exist throughout the world that players can
warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...
to as a form of
fast travel Fast travel or teleportation is a video game mechanic used in open world titles that allows a player character to instantaneously travel between previously discovered locations (teleport waypoints or fast travel points) without having to traverse ...
; among these are landmarks known as Statues of The Seven that can heal and revive characters, and provide benefits such as increasing player stamina. Items such as food and ore may be procured from the open world, while enemies and treasure chests drop other types of resources that may be used in enhancing a character's strength. Players can obtain food from hunting animals, gathering fruit and vegetables, or purchasing them from a store. Furthermore, there are special battle instances called Domains that reward materials that increase character and weapon strength. Ingredients that can be cooked into meals that regenerate characters'
health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organ ...
or boost various
stats STATS may refer to: * Statistical Assessment Service * STATS LLC, a former name of Stats Perform Stats Perform (formerly STATS, LLC and STATS, Inc.) is a sports data and analytics company formed through the combination of Stats and Perform. T ...
. Players can also procure ore that can be refined and then used to create weapons or enhance their strength. Each character has two unique combat skills: an Elemental Skill and an Elemental Burst. The Elemental Skill can be used at any time except for the cooldown period immediately after use. In contrast, the Elemental Burst has an energy cost, requiring the user to amass sufficient elemental energy by defeating enemies or inflicting elemental status effects. Characters have control over one of seven natural elements: Cryo, Dendro, Pyro, Hydro, Anemo, Electro and Geo; which correspond to ice, plants, fire, water, wind, electricity, and rock, respectively. These elements can interact in different ways; for example, if a Hydro attack hits a target, the enemy will be inflicted with the "Wet" status effect, and if they are hit with a Cryo attack, it will inflict "Cryo". These two status effects combine into the "Frozen" status effect, temporarily preventing the target from performing any actions or until the player deals enough physical damage to the enemy. Switching between characters during combat and executing those skills allows those elemental interactions to take place. Certain elemental abilities may be required to solve puzzles within the overworld. A multiplayer mode is available in the form of co-op. Up to 4 players can play together in the overworld and join Domains. Player matching can either be done by requesting to connect with another player. If the player wishes to clear a Domain with other players, they will be automatically matched up with others looking to tackle the same objective. The game features cross-platform play, so players on any platform can play with each other. By completing quests to advance the story, the player can initially unlock four additional
playable characters A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not contro ...
, and more characters can be obtained via a gacha mechanic and in-game events. Several premium in-game currencies, obtainable through in-app purchases and playing the game, can be used to obtain characters and weapons through the gacha system. A pity system guarantees that the player will receive rare items after a set number of draws.


Story


Setting and characters

''Genshin Impact'' takes place in the world of Teyvat, composed of the seven major nations of Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine, Natlan, and Snezhnaya; each nation is ruled by a different god. The mysterious floating island of Celestia is allegedly home to gods and mortals who have ascended to godhood through great, heroic feats. Underground lie the ruins of the nation of Khaenri'ah which was destroyed by gods 500 years before the events of the game. Unlike the seven major nations, Khaenri'ah was not ruled over by a god. The player character, the Traveler (male or female, depending on the player's choice), is separated from their twin and becomes trapped in Teyvat. They are joined by a companion, Paimon, as they journey through Teyvat in search of their lost sibling. Although players can choose the name they want to be referred by, the Traveler's sibling refers to the Traveler by either Aether or Lumine if the Traveler is male or female, respectively. Each nation is associated with and worships one of The Seven, a group of gods known as the "
Archons ''Archon'' ( gr, ἄρχων, árchōn, plural: ἄρχοντες, ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem αρχ-, mean ...
", who each preside over one of the seven nations. Each member of The Seven is tied to one of the game's elements, and is also reflected in their nation's aspect. Barbatos, Rex Lapis, the Raiden Shogun, Kusanali, and the Tsaritsa are the Archons of Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, and Snezhnaya, respectively. However, the god who is the Archon may change over time as Archons pass away. If a person's ambitions are great enough, they may be granted a Vision—magical gemstones that give their bearers the ability to command an element and the potential to ascend to godhood and reside in Celestia. Mondstadt, the city of freedom, worships the Anemo Archon Barbatos and sits on an island in the middle of a lake. The city is protected by the Knights of Favonius, who are tasked with protecting Mondstadt and its citizens. To the southwest, Liyue worships the Geo Archon Rex Lapis (also known as Morax) and is the largest market harbor in Teyvat. The harbor city is presided over by the Liyue Qixing, a group of business leaders. There are also ancient guardians known as Adepti, a class of magical beings that includes Rex Lapis himself. East of Liyue lies Sumeru, an nation composed of both rain-forests and desert. Nominally ruled over by the Dendro Archon, Lesser Lord Kusanli, Sumeru is largely controlled by the powerful Akademiya, which is one of Teyvat's most prestigious research institutes. However, instead of celebrating their current god, the sages who lead the Akademiya focus much of their attention on venerating the former Dendro Archon, Rukkhadevata. Across the sea to the southeast lies the isolationist island nation of Inazuma, overseen by the authoritarian regime of the Raiden Shogun (also known as Baal) and three governmental bodies that together make up the Tri-Commission: the Tenryou Commission, Kanjou Commission, and Yashiro Commission; overseeing military and executive affairs, finances and foreign affairs, and ceremonial affairs respectively. Snezhnaya, ruled by the Cryo Archon known as the Tsaritsa, sends out diplomats called the Fatui, who maintain a friendly appearance while using more underhanded methods secretly. The Fatui are also led by the Eleven Fatui Harbingers, individuals given extraordinary powers and executive authority by the Tsaritsa. In addition to the Fatui, another major antagonistic faction in the game is the Abyss Order, a legion of monsters that declares themselves to be enemies to all of humanity and the nations of Teyvat. They are led by the "Prince" or "Princess", the lost twin of the Traveler. Each nation takes inspiration from real-life nations and cultures: "Mondstadt" is German for "moon city", and takes inspiration from medieval Western Germany; Liyue (, ''Jade Moon'') is based on China; Inazuma (, ''lightning'') is based on Japan; Sumeru, named after
Mount Meru Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...
, takes inspiration from North Africa, West and South Asia; Fontaine, (French for "Fountain") is based on France; Natlan is based on Indigenous America, Latin America and West African Cultures; and Snezhnaya (, ''snowy'') takes inspiration from Russia.


Plot

A pair of twins who travel across different worlds arrive in the world of Teyvat. As they attempt to leave it, their path is blocked off by a god who claims herself as the "Sustainer of Heavenly Principles", and separates them away from each other. One of the twins, referred to as the "Traveler", awakens and find themselves stranded and their powers sealed. Two months later, the Traveler meets Paimon, who proposes to aid and guide the them throughout the seven nations of Teyvat to search for the other twin. Paimon suggests that they consult with each nation's ruling archons, deities of elemental power, for assistance. They first arrive to the nation of Mondstadt, whose archon Barbatos is the God of Anemo. Upon arriving at the city of Mondstadt, they find that the city is being terrorized by a dragon called Stormterror. With the help of a bard named Venti, they realized that the dragon is being manipulated by the Abyss Order, a legion of mysterious creatures wreaking havoc throughout Teyvat. Venti reveals himself to be a manifestation of Barbatos and frees the dragon of its influence, informing it of his desire for all of Mondstadt to enjoy all freedom. After solving the crisis, they are ambushed by La Signora, a Fatui Harbinger diplomat from nation of Snezhnaya, who steals Venti's Gnosis (a symbol of an Archon's power) in the name of her archon, the Tsaritsa. Upon recovering, Venti has no answers to give about the Traveler's twin but advises them to visit the neighboring nation of Liyue to meet Rex Lapis, a manifestation of Morax, the Geo Archon. The Traveler and Paimon go to Liyue Harbor to visit Rex Lapis, only for him to descend lifeless from the skies. They are assisted by the mortician Zhongli and the Fatui Harbinger Childe, in performing a rite of farewell for the archon. Childe's ulterior motive—to find Rex Lapis's body and steal his Gnosis, is intercepted by the Traveler. To retaliate, Childe unleashes an ancient fallen god to terrorize the nation. Its inhabitants, the adepti and humans join forces to successfully defend Liyue. The Traveler and Childe later find out that Zhongli is the true vessel for Morax and has already exchanged his Gnosis with La Signora in an undisclosed contract. Zhongli retires as the ruling archon of Liyue, assuring the Traveler that the nation will be safe in the hands of the Qixing and Adepti. When the Traveler asks about their twin, Zhongli states that he has knowledge, but due to a contract, he cannot divulge any details. The Traveler and Paimon return to Mondstadt and meets a stranger named Dainsleif, who assists them in investigating an insidious attempt of the Abyss Order to artificially create a deity capable of overthrowing the sky-hovering realm of Celestia, which rules all over Teyvat. In their journey, Dainsleif divulges information about the fallen kingdom of Khaenri'ah and its connection to the Abyss Order. Their success in thwarting the attempt is interrupted by the arrival of Traveler's sibling, who refuses to reunite with the Traveler and is revealed as the leader of the Abyss Order. Dainsleif chases after them, leaving the Traveler to decide to continue on their original mission. The Traveler and Paimon are informed that the island nation of Inazuma is under an isolationist border policy and that the visions of some of its inhabitants are being confiscated by order of the Raiden Shogun, the vessel of the Electro Archon Baal. They stealthily arrive at the nation via boat, hoping for an audience with her, but their interruption of the Shogun's vision confiscation invokes her wrath instead. Barely escaping, they joins the insurgents and learns that the harmful decrees have been devised by the Fatui. Powerless in confronting the Fatui Harbinger No. 6, going by the name of Scaramouche, the Traveler is saved by the Raiden Shogun's shrine maiden Yae Miko, who trades in the Electro Archon's Gnosis for ransom. Miko devises a plan for the Traveler to confront the Raiden Shogun and her real master—Ei, the vessel of Baal's twin sister Beelzebul. Ei reveals that she and Baal once ruled Inazuma together as one before the latter's death. Grieving for her loss, she secluded herself and her country to preserve her ideals of eternity. Conceding defeat, she abolishes the vision hunt decree and reconsiders her understanding of an eternal nation. Despite their victories, Miko is unable to provide useful information to the Traveler about their sibling but suggests to visit the Dendro Archon, Lesser Lord Kusanali. The Traveler and Paimon returns to Liyue to explore the Chasm region and reunites with Dainsleif, who is unsuccessful in chasing after their sibling. Seeing a vision of their sibling attempting to revive the kingdom of Khaenri'ah, they are torn between helping their sibling and defeating the Abyss Order. Dainsleif declares that the Traveler must choose between the world of Teyvat or their twin before departing. Upon leaving the Chasm, The Traveler and Paimon journey to Sumeru in search of Lesser Lord Kusanali. Arriving in time for the Sabzeruz Festival in Sumeru City, they realized that the governing body, the Akademiya and its citizens revere the predecessor deity Greater Lord Rukkhadevata more than Lesser Lord Kusanali. Noticing that the same day keeps on repeating over and over, the Traveler follows a mysterious girl named Nahida, whom they discover is the vessel of Lesser Lord Kusanali physically imprisoned by the sages of the Akademiya. Together, they uncover that the sages, in partnership with the Fatui Harbinger Il Dottore, plan to extract human knowledge from its citizens and feed it into the mind of Scaramouche, thereby turning him into a human-created god. The Traveler and Nahida fight against Scaramouche (who has been encased in a
exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton ( endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...
powered by the Electro Gnosis) and manage subdue him. Nahida then seizes the Electro Gnosis and uses its power to meet with the last memory of Rukkhadevata, whereupon the previous god's memory informs Nahida that she herself is actually Rukkhadevata in " the new samsara". Rukkhadevata further reveals that during the Cataclysm, she strove to remove forbidden knowledge from Irminsul, but it ended up polluting her memory; Rukkhadevata then convinces Nahida that the only way to save Irminsul is for Nahida to erase Rukkhadevata's memory and emerge as the rightful archon, Buer. Afterwards,Dottore confronts Nahida and the Traveler and Paimon, knocking the Traveler and Paimon out with gas, and proposes to settle the conflict with her — in exchange for the Electro Gnosis that Scaramouche lost, he will deactivate the clones he made of himself. Nahida agrees to give the Electro Gnosis to Dottore in exchange for some information only she and II Dottore share. Following her settlements with Dottore, she returns the knowledge back to her people, allowing them to dream again. After the restoration of Sumeru to normalcy, Nahida informs the Traveler that their sibling has recorded history in Irminsul, and appears to hail from the world of Teyvat, unlike the Traveler, who is considered a "Descender" from another plane of reality, similar to the Heavenly Principles. She wishes them well and advises them to go to Fontaine, the land of justice and law.


Development

''Genshin Impact'' began development as early as late January 2017, with an initial team of 120 people, which grew to 400 by the end of that year, and reached 700 by February 2021. miHoYo revealed the game in June 2019 at
E3 2019 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2019 (E3 2019) was the 25th E3, during which hardware manufacturers, software developers, and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily retailers a ...
. The game was developed using the Unity Engine. The game had a development and marketing budget of around , making it one of the most expensive video games to develop. Between the announcement and release closed beta tests were held, allowing invited players to explore and interact with the open world. The game includes
voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentation ...
s in four languages, and 15 different languages for text. '' The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild'' is held in high regard by the development team, and is cited as one of the main inspirations for ''Genshin Impact''. Development was aimed at making the game different and fun from other MMORPGs in terms of its quest and combat systems as well as its random events and mode of exploration. The game was designed to be cross-platform as developing the game for PC and console allowed the developers to raise graphical fidelity for the game, such as rendering realistic shadows. The overall artistic vision of the game is intended to combine
anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
art style with more key elements from real-world cultures. For example, Liyue was first conceived of as a reimagining of
Chinese culture Chinese culture () is one of the world's oldest cultures, originating thousands of years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia and is extremely diverse and varying, with customs and traditions varying grea ...
through a fantasy perspective, and was combined with reference material from Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and Tianmen Mountain to create the region.


Music

Yu-Peng Chen Chen Yupeng (; born January 15, 1984), also known by his stage name Chen Zhiyi (), is a Chinese composer and music producer. He is best known for composing the soundtrack of ''Genshin Impact'', an open-world action and role-playing video game by ...
of HOYO-MiX composed the game's original score, which was performed by the
London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is one of five permanent symphony orchestras based in London. It was founded by the conductors Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a rival to the existing London Symphony and BBC Symp ...
, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, and the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. The approach to creating the soundtrack is to immerse players within the game, and provide emotional and beautiful melodies. Based upon a foundation of Western music, the score also has regional and cultural influences added depending upon the region. For example, in Mondstadt, Chen used woodwind instruments to reflect Mondstadt's association with wind and freedom. In contrast, the battle themes use
polyphony Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, ...
and other composing techniques, as well as mimicking orchestration elements from composers such as
Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...
. Several
soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrac ...
albums featuring music about characters and regions of the game have been released periodically. For his work on the soundtrack Chen was awarded the "Outstanding Artist—Newcomer/Breakthrough" at the 2020 Annual Game Music Awards. In an interview published in April 2021 Chen expressed interest in releasing the soundtracks on CD, as well as hosting concerts in the future. The first concert was held virtually on October 3, 2021, titled "Melodies of an Endless Journey" and featured multiple bands and an orchestra performing various soundtracks from the game. A second virtual concert was held on February 4, 2022, titled "Reflections of Spring" featuring the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra performing soundtracks from the Liyue region.


Release

The worldwide release, September 28, was announced on August 17 for PC and mobile platforms, and on August 28, it was revealed that the PlayStation 4 version was released on the same date. The game was made available on PlayStation 5 through backwards compatibility on November 11. On April 28, 2021, the PlayStation 5 version of the game was released, featuring enhanced visuals, improved loading times, and
DualSense controller The DualShock (originally Dual Shock; trademarked as DUALSHOCK or DUAL SHOCK; with the PlayStation 5 version named DualSense) is a line of gamepads with vibration-feedback and analog controls developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the Pla ...
support. The game will be released on Nintendo Switch, though no release window has been announced. In May 2022, the development team confirmed that the Nintendo Switch version is still in development. Prior to its release the game had over 10 million registrations, with over half of that from outside China. According to some, the game was the biggest international release of any Chinese video game. In the lead up to release, the game won the
Tokyo Game Show , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in September in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. T ...
Media Awards 2020 public poll, ranking first among 14 other games. Shortly after the game's launch, miHoYo announced a schedule for content updates over the following months. These content updates are planned to be implemented into the game every six weeks. Additional patches in the future will add more events and new areas of Teyvat. As a long-term project, much of the game remains to be finished. On release, only two of the seven major regions intended for the game were released, and miHoYo anticipates it will take several years for the game's story to be completed. In a presentation given in February 2021, miHoYo president Cai Haoyu estimated that ongoing development for the game would cost per year. Prior to the release of the game, miHoYo released a manga from 2018 to 2019 detailing the background of its characters and the fictional world of Teyvat, and other future plans include a line of comics, toys, and a possible movie. In September 2022, miHoYo announced a partnership with Japanese animation studio Ufotable to develop an anime adaption based on the game, accompanied by a concept trailer.


Controversies

When the game was first unveiled at the ChinaJoy convention in 2019, it was immediately and initially met with criticisms claiming that the game had similarities to ''Breath of the Wild''. '' Zelda'' fans at the convention showed explicit gestures towards the
Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
booth, with one individual destroying their PlayStation 4 console in protest. Shortly after release, players discovered that the game's kernel-based anti- cheat system would remain active after the game was closed or uninstalled, which raised concerns that the game had installed
spyware Spyware (a portmanteau for spying software) is software with malicious behaviour that aims to gather information about a person or organization and send it to another entity in a way that harms the user—for example, by violating their priv ...
. Some Japanese players using iOS devices also observed that the game read the contents of players' clipboards while starting up. miHoYo announced that both issues were the result of coding errors and have been addressed and fixed. On October 6, 2020, journalist and Twitch streamer Kazuma Hashimoto published a video on social media site
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
demonstrating how political terms controversial in China such as "
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
" and "
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
" are censored within the in-game chat. As the developer of the game, miHoYo, is based in China, they are subject to China's censorship policy, which includes complying with a relatively large list of banned words that cannot be used in game or via chat. Other terms not related to Chinese politics are banned as well, such as " Putin", "
Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
", and " Stalin". Extending outside of purely political wordage, innocuous terms such as "enemies" and "words" were also being censored. In November 2020, the game was met with controversy during a character's release, Zhongli, due to his gameplay and kit being viewed as poor to the point where it was taken as an insult toward Chinese players. miHoYo initially replied to the controversy regarding the character, saying that it was working as intended and there should not be any worry over that. Later, miHoYo issued an apology, and promised to improve the character's kit, through beta testing for version 1.3. In March 2021, fast food company KFC announced a collaboration event in China that offered exclusive pins and in-game items to customers who turned up and shouted the phrase "Meet in another world, enjoy delicious food!" at the restaurant's employees. As a result, KFC outlets in
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
,
Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and t ...
, and
Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also Chinese postal romanization, romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the prov ...
were overrun with fans. Despite authorities' best efforts to maintain
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
regulations, the promotion was forced to shut down. In April 2021, some called for a boycott of the game over claims of bigotry in the game's content. Some other users pointed out how the only playable characters with dark skin were described as "exotic" or "scary" in the game. Criticism was also aimed at one of the game's adult characters expressing love towards another character that appears to be a child, though this may have been an oversight as the character in question was noted to have used an adult model during earlier stages of development. The game's first anniversary celebrations in September 2021 received criticism due to the company's handling on the event. Fans of the game criticized the anniversary rewards compared to rewards for community events that favored content creators. miHoYo did not release any comment about the rewards, and the game was review-bombed by fans, driving its overall score in the Google Play Store down from 4.5 initially, to 1.9. miHoYo's other games, '' Honkai Impact 3rd'' and ''
Tears of Themis ''Tears of Themis''); pronounced as ''Weiding shijian bu'' in Chinese and ''Mitei Jiken-bo'' in Japanese is a free-to-play adventure game developed and published by miHoYo. The game was first released in Mainland China with Simplified Chinese lan ...
'' received the same review-bombing by fans amidst the controversy. The company made a formal apology to the players in response to the review bombing, responding with making the paid bundle pack planned to be sold in the upcoming live concert as a free 4-day login gift. On August 24, 2022, the game released the 3.0 version, introducing the Sumeru region. However, Sumeru's characters are thought to be "clearly inspired by cultures of Southwest Asia,
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
and
South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...
", but most of them are white-skinned, prompting accusations of whitewashing and
colorism Discrimination based on skin color, also known as colorism, or shadeism, is a form of prejudice and/or discrimination in which people who share similar ethnicity traits or perceived race are treated differently based on the social implications t ...
. On August 26, 2022, the
voice actor Voice acting is the art of performing voice-overs to present a character or provide information to an audience. Performers are called voice actors/actresses, voice artists, dubbing artists, voice talent, voice-over artists, or voice-over talen ...
of the character Dori in English, Anjali Kunapaneni, received a lot of harassment and criticism, forcing them to turn off the DM of their
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account. The mask of the character Xiao was called "satanic" by parents after it appeared in a middle school mural.


Security concerns

The game has been criticized for initially lacking security features ubiquitous on other sites, like two-factor authentication. On October 19, 2020, a vulnerable security flaw was discovered that exposed the phone number linked to a player's account during the password recovery attempt on the miHoYo website. However, the issue was not rectified until November 9, 2020. miHoYo has issued notices following the wake of security exposures, informing players to be careful about sharing account details and to bind their account to their email address and phone number. In May 2021, two-factor authentication was added whenever the player signs in on a new device. Similar to other online games, the game uses an anti-cheat system implemented by a kernel driver. The driver is used to prevent other programs from performing code injection, memory inspection, and other process manipulation. Originally, the anti-cheat driver would remain loaded after the game exited. This issue was rectified shortly after the game's release, and now unloads as soon as the game exits.


Reception

''Genshin Impact'' received "generally favorable reviews" according to
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
. The open world of Teyvat drew praise; '' IGN'' Travis Northup described Teyvat as "a world that is absolutely bursting at the seams with possibilities", and ''Hardcore Gamer'' Jordan Helm described it as "one big environmental puzzle". Liyue in particular was picked out by ''
Kotaku ''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier. Histor ...
'' Sisi Jiang for being "one of the most exciting regions that I've visited in a video game in years", before continuing on to discuss how the region "shows an idealized portrayal of Chinese social relations that exists in localized pockets". ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 ...
'' characterized the game as an incredible experience, noting that " e gameplay loop of collection, upgrading, and customization is captivating and compelling". The execution of gameplay impressed ''
Pocket Gamer ''Pocket Gamer'' is a video game website that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. The site launched in 2005 and is published and owned by UK company Steel Media Ltd. The site covers all major portable and mobile gaming formats, incl ...
'', and ''
Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017, and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. History ...
'' Chris Carter called the combat system "one of the most interesting things" about the game. NPR remarked that the game had an abundance of content despite being free to play. Gene Park of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' lauded the game as revolutionary for the genre, having players "imagine a mobile gaming world with titles with quality that matches the industry's top-tier experiences". ''
Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed '' polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two ...
'' also praised the game for differentiating itself from its peers, heralding its arrival as mobile games become more mainstream and appealing to "an audience outside the typical mobile gaming demographic" and "new players without the hardware to play more conventional and resource-hogging RPGs". Most of the criticisms about ''Genshin Impact'' come from the endgame aspects of the game, ''Kotaku'' noting that although the game provides a solid experience it also has "some of the typical bullshit that comes along with a zero-dollar price tag". ''
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'' echoed this criticism, noting that the game is "hampered a bit by the restrictions its free-to-play model imposes". ''
PC Gamer ''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games ...
'' said that playing the endgame becomes "a slog", and that the resin system "feels so unnecessary". Warning players about how predatory the monetization is, ''The Washington Post'' added that such a well-designed game from an aesthetic standpoint can lead some to gamble with the game's gacha system.


Accolades

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...
awarded ''Genshin Impact'' with "iPhone Game of the Year" in the
App Store An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the c ...
Best of 2020. The game also won
Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android operating sy ...
's "Best Game of 2020".


Commercial performance

On mobile platforms, ''Genshin Impact'' saw 23 million downloads and grossed approximately within a week after its release. Within two weeks, that figure rose to over , recouping its development and marketing budget. Its strong performance continued through October 2020 as the game was the highest-grossing game worldwide during that month. Its largest revenue came from China, Japan, South Korea, and the United States, with 69 percent of mobile revenue coming from outside China itself during this time period specifically. In the United States, its release was the largest launch of a role-playing game on mobile in history. On mobile platforms, ''Genshin Impact'' had grossed over $393 million within two months after release and over $1 billion by the end of March 2021, the third highest revenue from a mobile game during that time frame after '' Honor of Kings'' and '' PUBG Mobile'', making it one of the highest grossing mobile games of all time and the fastest game to reach that milestone on
Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android operating sy ...
and the
App Store An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the c ...
. By October 2021, the game had grossed $2 billion. It became the world's third highest-grossing mobile game of 2021, with grossed that year. By December 2021, the game had grossed on iOS and Android devices worldwide. The game's largest mobile market is China with 30% of revenue, followed by Japan with 23% and then the United States with 20% of revenue. Across all platforms (including mobile, console and computer platforms), the game is estimated to have grossed nearly in its first year by September 2021, the highest ever first-year launch revenue for any video game. The mobile version grossed a further between January and March 2022, adding up to more than grossed .


Explanatory notes


References


External links

* * * * {{miHoYo 2020 video games Action role-playing video games Adventure games Android (operating system) games Cooperative video games Fantasy video games Free-to-play video games Gacha games Game Developers Choice Award winners Golden Joystick Award winners IOS games MiHoYo games Nintendo Switch games Open-world video games PlayStation 4 games PlayStation 5 games The Game Awards winners Video game controversies Video games containing battle passes Video games developed in China Video games featuring protagonists of selectable gender Video games with cel-shaded animation Video games with cross-platform play Windows games