What you need to know
- Genshin Impact is now available to download on Xbox Series X and Xbox Cloud Gaming.
- It is a free-to-play action RPG where you explore a giant open-world fantasy land where you obtain playable characters via Gacha-pulling.
- Genshin Impact's Xbox port will launch with all base game and post-launch content up to Version 5.2 and include bonus items for Xbox players and members of Xbox Game Pass.
On September 28, 2020, a little company called MiHoYo (also known as HoYoverse) launched Genshin Impact, a free-to-play action RPG for mobile devices and the PlayStation 4. This title captured the hearts and minds of gamers around the world for its expansive open-world exploration, in-depth combat, charming characters, and surprisingly high production values, given it was originally designed for mobile games.
Four years later, Genshin Impact has become one of the most successful videogame franchises in modern times, grossing nearly ten billion dollars worldwide (according to an analytic report by gameworldobserver) and winning several awards from Golden Joystick Awards, PlayStation Partner Awards, and The Game Awards. And now, Xbox players will finally get to experience the impact this title has made on the industry as Genshin Impact is now available to download and play on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Cloud Gaming. For the latter, it also has full native touch controls across the entire game, meaning you don't need an attached Xbox controller to play it.
RELATED: Rumors suggest another PS5 exclusive is making its way across to Xbox Series X|S
For those unaware, Genshin Impact is a free-to-play action-RPG where you play as a world-hopping adventurer known as the Traveler. During your travels, you get ambushed by a mysterious and malevolent god who proceeds to kidnap your sibling and trap you in the fantasy world of Teyvat.
Now you must explore this strange land for clues as to where your sibling has been taken, recruit powerful allies to your quest, and empower yourself with new magical abilities and weapons to confront the god who trapped you here.
The Xbox version of Genshin Impact will include all the content from the base game and all its post-launch content updates up to the recently released, Version 5.2, the "Tapestry of Spirit and Flame". Additionally, Genshin Impact will include some special items for Xbox players such as early access to the 'Wings of Fate's Course Intertwined' Wing Glider (an item which allows you to glide across large distances) and recurring in-game item packs for Xbox Game Pass members.
To top it off, Genshin Impact doesn't require Xbox Game Pass Core for its multiplayer functions, so you and your friends can play together immediately in online co-op without needing to buy extra subscription services.
🎃The best early Black Friday deals🦃
- 🎮ASUS ROG Ally (Ryzen Z1) | $349.99 at Best Buy (Save $150!)
- 💽Seagate Xbox Series X|S Card (2TB) | $199.99 at Best Buy (Save $160!)
- 📱iPad 9th Generation (64GB) | $199.99 at Best Buy (Save $130!)
- 🎮Xbox Series X (1TB) | $449.99 at Best Buy (Save $50!)
- 🖥️ABS Cyclone Desktop (RTX 4060) | $1,099.99 at Newegg (Save $400!)
- 🕹️Amazon Fire TV + Game Pass Bundle | $74.99 at Amazon (Save $52!)
- 💻HP Victus 15.6 (RTX 3050) | $449.99 at Best Buy (Save $430!)
- 🎮Lenovo Legion Go (Ryzen Z1 Extreme) | $549.99 at Best Buy (Save $150!)
- 📺HP Curved Ultrawide (34-inches) | $349.99 at Best Buy (Save $130!)
Genshin is about to make a huge 'impact' on the Xbox community
• Best Xbox / PC headsets in 2024
• Best upcoming Xbox / PC games
• Best Xbox controllers
• Best Xbox accessories
• Best small gaming PCs
• Best gaming laptops in 2024
Personally, I've been somewhat intrigued to play Genshin Impact for a long time just to see how this humble, little, game managed to garner so much acclaim and profits in such a short time, but never really found the time to do so until now.
I was especially interested in playing it after reading Mia Skye's overview of Genshin Impact. This game has so many cool playable party members you can collect (which you can potentially earn without spending a single dollar on the 'Gacha' elements) and some awesome, flashy-looking combo attacks you can pull off as a reward for building the correct party compositions for the right situations for both exploration and combat.
Will Genshin Impact wow Xbox audiences as it did on mobiles and PlayStation consoles, and become one of the best Xbox games? Will it also be able to stand out amongst the crowd of the best Xbox JRPGs like Metaphor: ReFantazio, Persona 3 Reload, and Yakuza: like a Dragon?
Join me and many other Xbox players to find out as we begin our adventures into the world of Genshin Impact now that it is available to download and play on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Cloud Gaming.
