First announced last year,Genshin Impactwill soon be officially launching for consoles and mobile devices. WhileGenshin Impactinitially drew comparisons toBreath of the Wild, the two games share little besides aesthetic.Genshin Impact’s story, it seems, follows a different track fromBreath of the Wild, almost to an extreme.
A few things can be confusing aboutGenshin Impactupon first viewing, but it is now very clear what the game is.Genshin Impactis an open-world action-RPG, with players able to switch between a party of 4 characters mid-action. Think of a mix ofWorld of Warcraftwithout the multiplayer and theTales ofseries without the battles taking place in a small arena. There are some world traversing elements similar toBreath of the Wild, but in both story and gameplay, it differs a lot.
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The story ofGenshin Impact, or at least parts of it, has been available on its website for a while in the form of an accompanying manga, but has been further clarified by a story teaser trailer released today. The teaser talks about how Mondstadt, a city in the game, was once walled by stone and ruled by a tyrant. The narrator, who is most likely the current Archon of wind, tells of how he met a young bard who incited rebellion, which was successful and the tyrant was defeated. More will be known afterGenshin Impact’s release, but this is the most clear-cut backstory players have so far.
This teaser is most likely related to the backstory of Venti, one of several characters with a backstory described as “mysterious.” Venti bears a striking resemblance to the boy in the video, and according to a comment in the video, is most likely a recreation or reincarnation of him. Considering the fact thatGenshin Impacthas had several closed betas, the last of which was on July 2, it makes sense players have been collecting the game’s lore.
BecauseGenshin Impactis designed to be ongoing, just like a live service game, its story will likely not be complete on launch. On top of that,Genshin Impactwill be free to play.Genshinis the spiritual successor toHonkai Impact, a series of mobile games from the same developer (miHoYo). Thegameplay ofGenshin Impactis not affected by this, but the amount players can loot is.
Genshin Impactlaunches free-to-play on September 28 for Mobile, PC, and PS4, with a Switch version in development.
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