It was 2020 when Genshin Impact first mentioned the name 'Snezhnaya.' Now, nearly six years later, the Traveler is finally stepping into the final nation of Teyvat. Snezhnaya is a pivotal region in the game's narrative. Moreover, as the subculture gaming market undergoes significant shifts and generational changes, the upcoming version represents a critical juncture for both Genshin Impact and HoYoverse, both internally and externally.

One might ask, "Why now?" While office workers might relate to the feeling that every day—from hiring to retirement—is a crisis, one could argue that the game has always been in a state of crisis. However, Genshin Impact has been in service for nearly six years since 2020.

Despite this, the current atmosphere of the game is quite calm. Long-time players are likely enjoying the current version. The 'Song of the Moon' version has seen higher-than-expected satisfaction, and information about 'Snezhnaya,' where the journey will soon continue, is being revealed bit by bit. In a way, we are currently in the eye of the storm. Today, I would like to examine the reasons for this and explain why the next update for Genshin Impact is so significant.

The first factor is the in-game Archon Mission and story progression. The current version is the eighth of the 'Song of the Moon' cycle, which would be the .7 version in traditional numbering. Since the 'Song of the Moon' cycle, official numerical versioning has been dropped, changing the notation. Regardless, after this version, the Traveler is set to depart for Snezhnaya.

Snezhnaya is also the home base of the Fatui, who have been the Traveler's adversaries and a constant source of conflict since version 1. You will finally come face-to-face with the Tsaritsa—the Archon who has been collecting the Gnosis from all the Archons across Teyvat—and learn her true purpose.

Of course, the relationship hasn't been purely antagonistic. While they have shown a penchant for violent seizure, there have also been instances of negotiation and rational choice. Thus, while some Fatui like Signora and Dottore are encountered as pure villains, others like Arlecchino and Tartaglia occupy the position of collaborators. The important point is that after nearly six years of clashing with the Fatui, the journey is finally moving to their 'home base.'

Throughout this process, the Traveler has learned the truth about the world of 'Teyvat,' the meaning of their own existence, the truth about the Heavenly Principles, and the history of the world. A massive turning point and a core objective in the Traveler's journey are now right before us. Furthermore, we will finally be able to witness the 'Winter Night's Lazzo' that has been cryptically hinted at since Fontaine.

Even the Archon Mission (story), which could rarely shake the label of being "a bit childish," moved with a serious tone throughout the "Nordkrai" arc. From start to finish, a clear and distinct villain played a stellar role, which helped resolve the nuanced conflict structures and cooperative relationships. It was a version that neatly wrapped up future objectives as well. From the development team's perspective, they successfully established a serious flow for the Traveler's story leading up to Snezhnaya and solidified the conflict and goals.

Snezhnaya is not a place the Traveler can visit lightly; it is the heart of enemy territory. Perhaps that is why the tone was set to be heavy from the start. An atmosphere has been created where the Traveler cannot simply approach it with a "What shall we do in this new country?" mindset. It deviates from the start of previous versions. As it begins differently from a narrative and world-building perspective, it is a version worth watching to see what kind of story Genshin Impact will tell and how it will evolve.

Other in-game changes cannot be overlooked. While the game has been consistently updated and improved since launch, there is a noticeable point where that flow accelerated. Especially since the 3 Sumeru version, it felt like Genshin Impact began replacing and improving its systems in earnest. That flow of change accelerated significantly in the 5 Natlan version, and with the 'Song of the Moon' version, the improvements have piled up to the point where it is no longer the Genshin Impact of the past. It has even been rebranded as 'Genshin Impact: Song of the Moon.'

While the changes were felt slightly starting from Fontaine, they are undeniable after moving past the Natlan region. For those who only played up to around version 2, the current Genshin Impact has changed so much that they might ask, "Is this really the same game?" Since there are too many to list, let's summarize them with categories and examples.

The overhauled modeling is the most representative example. Seeing it in images is the fastest way to understand. Showing the changes in tall female characters across versions, or the same character transformed by a skin, is the most definitive proof. There is even a preview of further improvements through the past 'Genshin Impact | Behind the Scenes—Towards Snezhnaya, and Towards the Future' video, and recent notices regarding specification changes make the future even more promising.

Even just looking at the modeling, you can see the gradual changes. As textures become clearer and details more intricate and varied, the decorations and expressions have increased. These subtle changes have accumulated, leading players to feel that the modeling of old and new characters is distinctly different. Furthermore, the NPCs, who once felt like a repetitive cycle of Dunyarzad, are gradually becoming more diverse, and in cases of significant World Missions, unique models are now being used. The world of Teyvat has become more vibrant, and the improvements compared to the past are clearly visible.

Beyond this, there are many things that have changed immensely compared to the early versions. While it might seem natural, it is worth noting that most of these changes were applied suddenly and rapidly starting from the 5.N versions. Paimon even summarizes these details via the official cafe after every update broadcast. Overall, a summary of the major improvements that have significantly impacted gameplay and the business model is as follows.

- Improvements to the farming system (Artifact option selection, rerolls)
- Support for older characters (Witch's Gift)
- Convenience improvements for open-world exploration (Compass, exploration elements, map interaction, multi-layered structure improvements, etc.)
- Improvement and introduction of neglected elemental reactions (Bloom, Electro-Charged, Crystallize / Superconduct)
- Introduction of dialogue skip, mission list, and replay features
- Client convenience optimization (key binding, official controller support, etc.)
- Expansion of end-game content (Imaginarium Theater, Ley Line Overdrive)
- Major overhaul of in-game guides
- Relaxation of the business model (Capturing Radiance, Fate Point reduction for Epitomized Path, Path of Training)
- Introduction of UGC and sandbox elements (Star-Sea World)

In a way, these changes were inevitable for Genshin Impact. Characters from long ago needed to be brought up to speed to remain viable in the current power-creep environment. Tedious farming and various functions also needed modernizing. Furthermore, they could not stick to the same business model forever, and since the Spiral Abyss alone was insufficient for utilizing the vast roster of characters, two new types of end-game content were created.

Furthermore, the developers have created 'Imagarium Theater,' a UGC mode that allows players to experiment and create their own content using the vast array of game objects, effects, and characters that Genshin Impact has built up over time. Whether players love it or hate it, Genshin Impact has consistently tried many different things. These experiences and their outcomes have accumulated, leading to the creation of new features and the improvement of old ones. Through this, the team is striving to meet the high standards and expectations of today's players.

These changes in Genshin Impact can be seen as a positive side effect of competition, with the background being that the industry situation Genshin Impact faces has changed. Games capable of threatening Genshin Impact's dominance have now emerged in earnest. In the past, Genshin Impact emerged with an 'open world' identity at a time when the genre classified in China as 'ACGN games' was being established as 'subculture.' As you know, it achieved great success, and analyzing the success factors of Genshin Impact became a global standard.

As a result, games challenging Genshin Impact's dominance appeared, but Genshin Impact remained firm. Even though other open-world games established their own territories, the massive castle that is Genshin Impact, built by HoYoverse, has withstood the test of time without a scratch.

Now, years later, the market situation is different. A game has appeared with enough impact to give Genshin Impact a sense of urgency and a moment for self-reflection. It is not about who is better or worse, but about games that are in a position where they inevitably influence each other. That game is Wuthering Waves. Since the appearance of 'Wuthering Waves,' which brought intense action, excellent graphics, and more relaxed and improved systems, the acceleration of Genshin Impact's changes has been implicitly felt.

The update for 'Natlan,' where Genshin Impact's changes became clearly visible, was applied on August 28, 2024, while Wuthering Waves was released on May 23, 2024. Of course, there was a feeling that they were preparing for future competitors starting from the 4.N Fontaine versions. It feels as if they prepared from Fontaine and actively reflected those changes starting from Natlan to rebuild their competitiveness.

The sense of crisis and the need for improvement were felt not only externally but also within HoYoverse. Their own family member, 'Honkai: Star Rail,' achieved a surprising success, and their younger sibling, 'Zenless Zone Zero,' showed flashy, intense action and a level of production quality that is hard to match. Although there were some difficult times initially, they began to improve the game at a tremendous speed. Moreover, their competitor, Wuthering Waves, also fixed the game so much that players complained, "Why are there patches every day?" The development team must have felt most acutely that if they rested on their laurels, the quality of the experience they intended to provide would drop, and they would fall behind competing games.

From the end of the Fontaine version and the start of Natlan, there have been so many changes that players can clearly feel the shift in the atmosphere of the Genshin Impact development team. Comments like "Yeah, it should have been like this from the start" or "This was a good change" have been appearing noticeably, even amidst criticisms of remaining inconvenient or frustrating elements.

On top of this, another powerful bomb has been dropped on the market. Changes have occurred in 'gacha,' an element almost inseparable from subculture games. While Wuthering Waves also boldly improved its gacha, things that go a step further are now emerging. Paradoxically, this is proof that HoYoverse's monetization system had become a source of fatigue for players. Duet Night Abyss has removed gacha, and 'Infinite ANANTA' has confirmed there will be no character gacha. Ereban introduced a pity system without 'off-banner' pulls and turned the gacha format and presentation into a board game, offering high satisfaction by making it 'fun to watch' and anticipate.

This has changed the concept of the HoYoverse-style 'pity' system that results in 'off-banner' pulls, significantly reducing stress. It has shaken the major framework of subculture gacha that had been fixed for over a decade. Of course, it's not that there weren't games with pity systems without off-banner pulls before. Many have come out. But it is true that no game has had as much impact as Ereban and Wuthering Waves. However, Wuthering Waves and Ereban have clearly signaled this to the market, and Duet Night Abyss and the yet-to-be-released Infinite follow a similar context. It can be seen as a proper declaration of a 'generational shift' in subculture games. They have provided the answer that "games with less monetization stress" can also be successful, and that diversification and expansion of the business model can be another key.

Of course, naturally, these business models would inevitably have lower revenue than games that competed solely on pure 'gacha.' Nevertheless, there is room for user reviews to be much better. Furthermore, as the opportunity cost of gacha itself decreases, players may show a more generous reaction to the 'performance inflation' issue that inevitably follows the nature of subculture games, which must release many new characters.

Now is the time to keep watching. Even Wuthering Waves, which remains a good precedent despite some relaxations, is not a game without monetization stress. We must continue to watch the future of Ereban, which removed off-banner pulls, and Duet Night Abyss, which approached gacha in a different way. If they continue to grow and gain good reviews, the old-fashioned business model could become the biggest drawback of the game itself. The era is different now from six years ago when Genshin Impact first appeared.

Nevertheless, the reason Genshin Impact remains firm is that it still has a large loyal user base, and it has shown a quite satisfactory path to these users throughout the past versions. In fact, Genshin Impact has almost no direct communication. They release updates at set times, broadcast previews, test and refine new content with testers, and apply the updates.

And they have almost never broken these promised schedules for several years. In other words, they have properly created a 'routine' for players. At the same time, they have collected feedback through content satisfaction surveys and consistently held offline events and collaborations. Even if they don't communicate directly, it can be said that they have consistently kept their promises regarding service.

Still, what isn't easy are the traces of the long years. Because an absurd amount of content has accumulated, a newcomer couldn't finish it all even if they enjoyed it for a whole year. This leads to the disadvantage that there is a performance gap between 'standard' characters, which can be called early characters, and pickup characters, and the convenience features of early regions are not very good. This can be seen as a daunting homework assignment that Genshin Impact has not yet refined but is difficult to touch immediately.

On the other hand, the operational know-how accumulated over the long years, the steadily grown production quality, content composition methods, and experience in building stories, worldviews, and atmospheres are an impregnable, massive castle. And the memories the Traveler has built over nearly six years will be a powerful weapon that can never be ignored.

Looking back at the past years and the "Genshin Impact: Song of the Moon" version, it seems like a fun version with more good memories and experiences than bad ones. It started with the controversy of "Is Genshin Impact even trying to make money?" which was disappointing, and the approach to the radical level 100 breakthrough was also regrettable, but the subsequent actions were actually not bad at all.

While releasing characters that pull up older characters pushed out by inflation, support for older characters was also provided. Furthermore, many convenience features were introduced, and the satisfaction with the core Archon Mission was high. The progress of the new region, Nordkrai, was also excellent, and it grandly wrapped up the ending that could have been a bit uncomfortable by returning to Sumeru. Finally, even in the connecting version that served as a break, it showed a story that would satisfy Travelers.

Furthermore, although not part of the main Archon Mission, the Temple of Space that any Genshin Impact user would admire, and the Frost Moon region revealed in the final version, naturally incorporated the unique atmosphere of space and dreamlike content that Genshin Impact had not shown before. The story with the Hexenzirkel was also used as a cheat key to revive memories of the early versions of Genshin Impact. And by consistently featuring protagonists from older versions in events or Archon Missions and updating content to see their daily lives, they constantly stimulated players' 'memories' and made them interested in Teyvat.

Of course, there may have been some slightly disappointing events, but overall, the new characters, Archon Missions, and World Missions all came out satisfactorily in ways that Genshin Impact core users would really love. Therefore, the 'Genshin Impact: Song of the Moon' version can be recalled as a version that deserves to be called a "peak renewal" or a "revival period."

Therefore, the next version is the core point. As you can see if you look closely at the PV, while they previously mentioned and wrote 'Genshin Impact: Song of the Moon' as the full name, from the new version, it has returned to just 'Genshin Impact.' I see this as meaning that the 'first digit' has changed. And in HoYoverse games, a patch where the first digit changes is the biggest update, closer to an expansion pack concept that introduces new scales in earnest, including new countries (or regions), stories, and characters. It is a time when the interest and expectations of many users are poured out. This version can be said to be a time when HoYoverse is putting its greatest effort into making a leap forward.

In terms of the game's story and worldview, it is the point where the conflicts and events of the past few years are reignited most significantly. Looking at the industry atmosphere, as powerful competitors armed with their own new weapons have already appeared and are signaling their arrival, I see this as a time to show the potential of a veteran. With this much, can't we have some excited expectations, saying "Is something big coming?"

The market today is completely different from when Genshin Impact first mentioned Snezhnaya about six years ago. And Genshin Impact has also changed, and is facing another change. Ultimately, the next version, which has been confirmed for release on August 12, is a kind of 'stage of proof' for Genshin Impact. The Traveler is standing at that door for the first time in six years.