Multi Genshin Impact anyone?

I can't possibly be the only one currently hooked on this game, especially as it's a F2P. Don't let the F2P (or the anime girls) put you off, free to have a go and a cracking game IMO.

The F2P element initially really put me off, since I like to buy a game and play it until I get bored of it, but seems like that works very well for F2P in this game - i.e. if you're a completionist then this is not the game for you because you just won't (or you'll end up homeless).

So far I'm dozens of hours in and really enjoying it, and only using free pulls I get through gameplay. I think it's actually a better game for it due to the sheer awesomeness of getting a 5* item/char if I were to get one (the drop rates are shockingly low), instead of spending real money on real disappointment doing it the other way.

Tempting to write it off as a BOTW knock off, and there's absolutely heavy inspiration in the art style, enemy set and some of the mechanics, but the combat mechanics are far more complex (and IMO better) in Genshin and it feels like a totally different game. There's immense satisfaction in a fight well fought and stacking elements for stupid damage, especially when you're not playing with "the best" characters and doing F2P.

Anyone having a go just be aware that you have to play in a certain way to maximise fun unless you want to spend a fortune - resources are absolutely finite (or rather, behind a pay/grind wall), and you don't necessarily realise this until later on, by which time if you've burned through them, it's too late. I was dubious about the F2P element so did my research to make sure it wasn't going to throw up a paywall just around the time I really started to enjoy it, and this is a key part of not making that happen. It means you have to be smart about the team you pick, how you level them, focus on specialists and combos, because if you try to max everyone's stats you end up with a whole team of mediocre characters and have to pay/grind your way out of it. Any of the characters can be excellent, and it's down to you to decide which ones you want to use and suit your playstyle, and it makes the game all the better.

And there's no PvP, just co-op or solo - so you don't need to compete against people who have spent £5000 on stuff.

Anyone else currently playing?

 

i actually downloaded it this morning before i raced off to work, ive been hearing so many things about it i figured id give it a go

want to fill us in on that a bit more before i dive in?

 

A few tips I can offer...

- Hold off levelling, and particularly ascension of characters, until you feel you really need to, i.e. you're getting your ass kicked left right and centre. You don't want to spend a bunch of resources to make a given character OP to then drop them from use when you get a better one.
- Pick your specialists and focus on them - one higher levelled ATK focussed character on the team, two lower levelled chars with elements that will stack the first's damage and one healer can do wonders and preserve those precious EXP books again until you really need them.
- Similarly with weapons... hold off levelling too much until once you get a good 4* with a set of base stats, I levelled a bunch of tat up straight off the bat, but as soon as I got a decent 4* whose stats were much less than the run-of-the-mill stuff I've been levelling up, and realised I then have the choice of using a bunch more resources on levelling it up to just make it on par or writing it off entirely, I figured this one out. Fortunately fairly early game so didn't burn through too much though.
- Artifacts... I didn't really pay much attention to these, and set bonuses until quite a ways in... putting the right set on the right character is the difference between getting your ass kicked and walking it (or rather, the difference between needing to plow another 10 levels into your characters or not). I've not levelled many of mine, just the odd one when I decide that it's the perfect 4* for a certain character.
- I didn't really pay much attention or get how healers worked early game because it's not really important and was visiting a statue or eating things to heal... until I figured this out and moved my 1-constellation Barbara into rotation that I hadn't used at all because she does poo damage... now she's the most important part of my party.
- I think getting lost and exploring the world pays off, you could probably blitz the story quests but you would miss out on a lot of the game before you hit the pay/grind wall. There are some quests that are level locked, but I've not had to grind to get to that level. If you're only doing story quests I don't think that would be the case though.
- First time you sit down and play for the day, do the commissions and domains once you unlock them - they're fun so it's not a grind in regular play, but there's only so many you can do per day so if you find you need resources later on, and need to do either of these to get them, you may find yourself having to wait to get it, and there are only certain drops on certain days so you may even have to wait longer.
- IMO save up starglitter for characters or weapons and not wishes, I didn't initially but wish I would have.

A lot of this can really be summed up by this - don't spend any resources on basically anything until you understand the mechanics of what you're getting and whether you really need it, or there's a better alternative. This makes it sound drier than it is - there's a lot of complexity when you're getting started, but things start to click after not long and you'll have it all figured out.

 

You can grab it on EGS now if you so desire:
https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/p/genshin-impact

Also, there's a bonus code to enter in-game: GENSHINEPIC

 

So I'm still playing this religiously.
It's a different game now I'm AR56 (i.e. end-endgame) but the regular content drops are enough to keep me busy with exactly how busy I want to be kept with a game. And in spite of much of youtube/twitch calling out said content as "filler", I've enjoyed all of it. The recent hide and seek event in particular was some of the most joy I've ever had from a game.

Join us Hex.

JOIIIIIN USSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

 

Never heard of it. Hex says its on Epic so does that mean it exclusive? Epic can go eat a donkeys **** if it is.

 

No it's ftp on their own website too. In the same way openttd is on steam I guess.

 

Along with Android, iOS, PS4 and now a native PS5 version.

Sadly no crossplay between PS and other platforms (Sony's privacy policy), but you can play on PC and then insta-switch to a phone/tablet. Impractical without a controller for a lot of the content, but fine for miscellaneous exploring or daily "chores" if you chose to do them.

That said I know many play exclusively on mobile, but the limited controls definitely turns on hard mode for the more difficult content.

 

Thought I'd drag this up with an updated mini-review, tips and tricks as if it's something you've looked at in the past there's no better time to start playing with the approach of the 1y anniversary, a bunch of loot, a free character (Aloy of Horizon fame from the crossover, who is actually pretty fun in game) and the addition of another massive region of the map and completion of another major story arc.

I've been at it since nearly day one and have recently crossed 1000 hours of play time... a big part of keeping me sane through lockdown months and a few weeks of being laid up for a recently surgery in there.

All comments made in prior posts still hold true for early gameplay - i.e. perhaps 4 months of regular play. The emphasis on effective resource management continues to largely ring true right through to endgame though.

There's been a lot of variety added to gameplay since the start - some through limited-run events, some permanent, and a variety of mini-games that range from a pleasant temporary distraction to quite possibly some of the most fun I've had playing any game, ever (hide and seek basically... which sounds dumb, but damn it was fun). There now seems to be regular events in place to put a challenge on end-endgame players, which I'm enjoying though they may be frustrating for newer players. The main chunk of the rewards seem pretty easy to get though.

When it's good, it's really really good - gameplay, story, overall fun factor. It's not always though, as there's the odd dip in new stuff in between content drops when it can get a smidge boring or repetetive, graciously short lived though. There's the odd new mechanic/puzzle/challenge that comes around as well that you can tell they were trying out something new, and it just didn't work for me. Few and far between though. This is having completed everything thus far though, I should imagine for a new player there's enough there to fully second-life the game for at least a few months, longer with more casual play. I really like the way the story is turning out and whilst it might get a bit "power of friendship happy ending" at times for some... honestly I dig it.

That's not to say it's all glowing praise - there inevitable dry spots in content once you've caught up on the main story. With the exception of of around 4 days every 6 weeks where it's totally dry (a few days prior to every major update) there's always something going on, and 4/5 times it's something fun as well, but 1/5 of the time it kind of feels like filler. Better lately, but there's still the odd filler event. You can choose to just skip it, but there's always FOMO with the rewards it gives you - so even with the filler stuff I usually get through it for the loot - as mentioned resource management is key, and often worth what amounts to a brief braindead grind for more stuff. For a newer player, the main quests are never going anywhere though, so worth doing the stuff with an expiration date first, that is, if it's enjoyable.

There's no possible way to talk about this game without discussing the gacha element. Important to note that there's no PvP, no leaderboards and no content where you need to spend to realistically complete. So IMO there are a two ways to play it:

- Either religiously free to play or buying one or both of the monthly passes (£5/mo each) and spend the in-game currency as you get it. Consider the RNG of character/weapon pickups a part of the gameplay and take joy in making do with what the game gives you - in all honesty this probably makes for the most interesting game. The monthly passes will give you more regular drops of the in-game currency you use to get (random-ish) weapons/characters, or more resources to upgrade them and are "excellent value" as much as spending anything on a theoretically F2P game can be.

- Do effectively the same as above, except hoard the in-game currency that you get through normal gameplay (which is quite a bit) until there's a thing you really want and brute-force the RNG right out of it, which with the rate the currency drops tends to be possible to do for one high rarity thing every 6-8 weeks. This is probably better for late-game though when you already have a decent roster, as with the 6-ish starter characters some gamplay elements can be a little limited.

Either way - just know that you lose very little by "missing out" on a certain character or weapon - so far there's been little-to-no power creep and so long as you have a reasonable roster, even courtesy of RNG, there's no content that's insurmountable or needs the latest character/weapon.

Of course you can also brute-force the RNG with your wallet if you like and have the requisite disposable income. It's not truly random and the rates/guarantees are published so you always know the worst case scenario expenditure-wise for getting the toy you want.

I played the first way for four months, and I've played the last way since then - both ways are fun, but not to put it indelicately if your "pissing-away money" threshold isn't fairly high then don't give in to temptation to do it the last way.

With that being said, it's also entirely possible to ignore any gacha/RNG/loot/events and just play the main quest line until you're caught up, and then maybe pick it up again every 6 weeks.

Without a hint of hyperbole though, it's honestly amongst my favourite games of all time. I love open world single-player games but hate the massive downer when the realisation hits that you've explored everywhere and done everything - the fact it's a style of game right up my alley to start plus the ever-green-ness to it really appeal.

If anyone decides to give it a go drop your UID - co-op is fun generally, but especially if you're struggling with any of the dungeons/bosses and need someone to come in and do some one-shotting

 

IMO yes, fine.

Parental notes:
- Violence is soft, some humanoid characters but all animated "disappearing" sort of defeat animations common to more child-friendly combat games, e.g. Zelda-like disappearing.
- Story is saccharine to a fault at times - some of the deeper lore is less rosy but would expect much of that to blow straight over a 9yo. The questlines took a slightly dark/depressing turn a few months ago (imagine if the new land that opened up was DPRK and you're not far off), but nothing especially harrowing, and all with a generally happy ending.
- Some of the characters are particularly leggy/buxom anime girls, and one in particular that makes... "anime exertion noises" in combat/exploration (fortunately she's rubbish so no need to deal with that). But it's just anime tropes in general, it's doesn't go so far as to pander to a certain sort of audience. Basically there's a huge selection of characters and they're all cute, regardless of age/sex.
- Even when not spending a penny on the game there's sorta a gambling element in there, in that you can spend the in-game currency that you just get from playing on a chance to get a special weapon/character. It was for this reason I didn't let my daughter (8) play, until considering that I spent my childhood spending real pocket money on collectible cards. I've explained the system, and that she will not be spending any pocket money on this under any circumstances, and it might actually be a valuable lesson in real-life disappointment.
- The mechanics of combat and upgrades can be very complex and overwhelming at the start, and the controls. This is a learning curve for anyone regardless of age though.
- I've not done much co-op with randos, but haven't encountered any toxicity at all, very wholesome.


My 8yo daughter has just recently started playing and she's getting on fine - though we've decided that when it comes to upgrading characters she would just tell me which ones she likes and I would make them the best they can be with the stuff she's got until she gets the hang of it. And TBH I'm also giving my 38yo buddy guidance on character builds/stats, so...

 

My 10 year old also started on this.
Both of us don't really understand what she's doing, but she's having a lot of fun.

So far, there's not been a "pay" element in sight, She's just running through, gathering Characters.

 

Quite often this is the best type of fun

 

The option to do so isn't even available until a certain amount of progress through the game - though if she's getting characters other than the 7 starter/free ones it's unlocked.

Just make sure whatever platform she's playing on has purchases disabled and you're grand - the game doesn't proactively try to get you to buy at any point, but if she's using the in-game currency on wishes, and runs out of said currency goes to wish regardless, it will ask if she wants to top up. If she says "yes please" then it's very obvious that there would be actual money being exchanged after that, but if she is able to still go ahead then there's always that risk.

On playstation (where mine plays), with a child account it won't even let you access the store to spend in-game currency, let alone real currency, so whenever she wants something I need to log in to her account on mobile to get it.