Genshin Impact

[Bowsette Plus-Ultra]

After more than a year of waiting, several closed betas, and some angry Breath of the Wild fans smashing Playstation 4's (despite the game itself being multiplatform), Genshin Impact is here. Often lauded as a Chinese clone of Breath of the Wild, it made a splash in the gaming world by... looking a whole lot like a more anime version of Nintendo's first open world outing.

I had the chance to participate in one of the game's closed betas on PS4 and recently downloaded it on PC (base PS4 performance ain't good, if anyone is interested). Yes, it is a gacha game. Although a number of characters are unlocked by progressing through the game's extensive story mode, there are plenty who appear primarily in the form of packs. If you're a fan of Fire Emblem Heroes or the Fate franchise, you probably know how that goes.

I find the gameplay a lot of fun. While a little more number based than Breath of the Wild, it still focuses on the interaction between different elements while in combat. Splash an enemy with some water and then electrocute for some extra damage. Enemy with a wooden shield? A fire arrow will solve that problem. If you enjoyed climbing around and exploring in Breath of the Wild, then you'll probably enjoy it here, because it is... copied almost verbatim

So, has anyone played it? If so, what did you think of this Chinese Breath of the Wild with its anime girls and anime femboys?

(And for those interested, the game is currently out for PC, PS4, Android, and iOS. A Switch version is in the works, but will release at a later date.)

 

[Azure Sage]

I have a friend who tried the PC version. He found the controls horrible and with no options to map the buttons. He also said it becomes extremely "pay to win or else spend months grinding" after a certain point. I personally will not be trying it.

 

[Spirit]

This game is gacha as hell and really lays on the grind thick after the first half hour.

The shame is that the characters have very cool designs and are likeable, the world is very pretty and serene and fun to roam around in and the music is rather lovely too.

But the microtransations and the grind and the gacha is all just too much. This is Ass Creed levels of nose to the grindstone.

The controls are a bit meh, they don't feel as responsive as they should and the overall quality just isn't there, it feels cheap.

If this was a full priced game with none of the money grubbing then it'd be worth a go. As it is, it doesn't just want your money, it wants your blood and tears too.

Half good, half bad, and the bad is so bad.