- Selection Criteria
- #1 - A Skip Button
- #2 - Missing Characters
- #3 - Event Lockouts
- #4 - Gadget Hotkeys
- #5 - Toggle Constellations
- #6 - Artifact loadout Templates
- #7 - Food Buff Timers
- #8 - Artifact Rerolls
- #9 - Artifact Trading
- #10 - An Event Vault
- #11 - Co-Op Spiral Abyss
- #12 - Pet The Animals
- Honorable Mentions
- FAQ Section
- Hear Our Plea, Hoyoverse!
Within the world of game development, live service games are a new, exciting and intimidating prospect which, unlike standalone single-player titles, need constant love and attention to ensure that they remain popular and profitable. After all, without a strong concurrent player base, these games simply can’t survive and follow their planned roadmap.
For these games, their player base is their lifeblood, and to ensure that they keep the project afloat, the development team needs to keep pumping out regular content, updates, patches, and exclusive events that keeps stoking the fire. Then before you know it, it’s years later, and you have a chain of content that would take a new player months to complete. Well, that’s where Genshin Impact is right now.
The game has been around for a few years now, and has amassed a bucketload of content in the form of past events, story quests, brand new Archon Quests, new regions to explore, a ridiculous amount of Oculi to find, and a roster of characters that players clamber to wish for at every opportunity.
It’s a testament to great game design and the continued support that Hoyoverse has dedicated to Genshin over the years, which has seen this game regarded as one of the best live-service games around. However, despite the success, and despite the abundance of content, there are pockets of the GI community that still feel that there are obvious improvements still to be made. Changes that many have been crying out for since arriving in Mondstadt.
So with that in mind, we decided it was about time that we did our part, and wrote an open letter to Hoyoverse in the form of a list, depicting the most sought-after changes to Genshin Impact in 2023.
We feel that there are still so many things that could be adapted about Genshin to accommodate veterans and newbies alike. So allow us to run you through our list of demands. Dear Hoyoverse. This is Genshin Chronicle’s Genshin Impact Most Wanted Changes 2023 edition.
Selection Criteria
Okay, before we jump into our Genshin 2023 wishlist, we need to establish what warrants a spot on this list. So here is the criteria that we are working with:
- We won’t be including things like most wanted characters, or wishful thinking regarding storylines. We are talking about changes to existing content.
- The choices can be hard to implement for Hoyoverse, provided they would be worthwhile changes for both parties
- We will only be including changes that are realistic. So no pipe dreams. Just genuinely actionable changes.
- We will only be including changes that we feel the majority of the community would appreciate
Okay, that’s admin done and dusted. Now, let’s lay out our laundry list of requests!
#1 – A Skip Button
- Change Type: Quality of Life
- Implementation Difficulty: 4/10
Okay, so let me kick things off with the one thing I would love more than anything on this list, a skip button. Genshin currently allows you to mash buttons to move the dialogue along a little faster, and it also allows you to auto-play dialogue, so you could leave the room and fix yourself a snack if you were so inclined
However, there are just some aspects of the Genshin story that I have little to no interest in. However, I am interested in the EXP and primogems that come from enduring said quests. So for those who want to pick and choose what aspects of the story they want to engage with, why not just add a skip cutscene option in there?
I get that maybe Archon Quests and World Quests are essential for understanding the world, but do I really need to engage with dialogue for Daily Commissions that I have completed hundreds of times already? You already steal so much of my free time as it is, Hoyoverse; stop being greedy! Give me my skip button. Pretty please.
#2 – Missing Characters
- Change Type: Content
- Implementation Difficulty: 7/10
So when I say ‘missing characters,’ I don’t mean characters that inexplicably haven’t been given a banner yet, like Baizhu, for example. What I mean by this, is the character archetypes that are missing from the game altogether. There are lots of combinations out there, allowing you to use practically every weapon type and every weapon type.
However, there are a couple of combinations that remain missing. These are just a few examples of the combos we would love to see added to the game in the near future:
- Cryo Catalyst user
- Hydro Claymore user
- Physical Catalyst
You might think that this isn’t a big deal, but it is when there are assets within the game that can’t achieve their potential due to missing characters. Take the Dragonspine Weapon, Frostbearer. This weapon is custom-made for a Cryo Catalyst, and yet there isn’t one available in the game.
So why does this weapon exist at all? We would urge Hoyoverse to look at their character spreadsheet and look at the cross-sections that they have ignored for far too long.
#3 – Event Lockouts
- Change Type: Content
- Implementation Difficulty: 1/10
As someone that came to Genshin Impact a little later than most, I have been subject to Genshin Impacts’ cruel and senseless gatekeeping of content. Most of which I understood as certain aspects of the game were hidden behind various Adventure Ranks. However, even now, at AR53, I am being kept out of events and timed quests because of some outstanding prerequisite quests that I haven’t gotten around to.
Partly because there are so many hours in a day, but also because the order in which I would have to tackle the outstanding quests simply isn’t very clear. I’m sure anyone who hasn’t engaged with the Act III Interlude content will be able to relate. In fact, I’m locked out of the most recent Lantern Rite as we speak, which is most players’ highlight of the year.Â
So what I propose is that Hoyoverse does the nice thing and lets players engage with the content if they so choose. Even if they are under-leveled, or haven’t witnessed all the story beats needed to truly appreciate the content on offer. Surely it’s the player’s choice to engage with the content in whatever manner they choose, not the developer’s.
It’s a problem that has seen me pressing my face to the glass, looking in as my friends within the game get to enjoy the new content, and reap the rewards of completing these events. I just want to sit at the cool kid’s table with all the primogems and Hero’s Wit. Is that too much to ask?
#4 – Gadget Hotkeys
- Change Type: UI
- Implementation Difficulty: 5/10
There is quite a lot of quality of life changes that I could propose when it comes to UI and menuing. The ability to claim all your expedition rewards in one click would be fantastic, and the ability to claim all the reputation bounties at once would be a blessing.
However, one change regarding menuing comes up within community forums more than any other, and that is the outcry for a Gadget Hotkey Wheel. This would solve issues regarding the incredibly slow, tedious, and clunky menuing needed to swap between gadgets. Plus, it would also allow for more freedom to explore combinations of gadgets in quick succession.
We could use the Wind Catcher to get some height, then quickly jump over to the Red Feather Fan to get some speed in the air, then when we reach our destination, a little Jumpty Dumpty Party Popper to celebrate. It would make gadgets less of a gimmick and more of a trusted set of gameplay mechanics that we could employ at our leisure.
#5 – Toggle Constellations
- Change Type: UI
- Implementation Difficulty: 3/10
This is a pretty situational one, but an important option to include within the game nonetheless. If you are a Bennett main, then you will be very aware that Bennett’s C6 has the potential to ruin his character, and if you have him at C6, chances are that you will have invested a lot of resources into him.
Well, when you unlock C6, this means that all physical attacks will be infused with Pyro, meaning that some incredible combinations are rendered completely useless. Take characters like Eula or Razor. If you play them as physical damage dealers (as you should), then this means that they can’t trigger reactions consistently and ensures that the otherwise flawless team composition will never hit its true potential, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Other less triggering examples of constellations that make characters worse are Keqing’s C1 not allowing her to be a physical damage dealer, or Childe’s C4 can lead to inconsistencies when triggering desired reactions.
The reality is that Hoyoverse has been known to offer some pretty lame constellations for some characters. Venti C1, Keqing C1, Diona C4, and Razor C2 all spring to mind, and that is far from a comprehensive list.
So it would be cool to have an option within the game to turn off constellations that don’t marry together with the team composition we are trying to build. It would grant players more flexibility to experiment, and who knows, maybe some genius out there could find a new meta-breaking combo as a result.
#6 – Artifact loadout Templates
- Change Type: UI
- Implementation Difficulty: 6/10
When you are putting together team compositions, you have the benefit of being able to use a handful of team slots, which can be deployed on the fly without having to change the characters manually. It’s a great way to max out damage no matter what enemy you are up against.
Can’t trigger the reaction you need? Just swap teams before you engage in combat. Well, this ability to swap artifacts on the fly doesn’t exist in the game currently, and it makes building teams time-consuming. This can be for a variety of different reasons.
On the surface, the menuing needed to swap artifacts is a pain. Then if we add in the possibility that you are an FTP player or beginner who doesn’t have a tonne of artifacts to play around with, then you’ll find you are constantly moving around artifacts just to try out some makeshift builds.
Then if we add in the menuing needed for the Spiral Abyss and the teams we build between each floor, suddenly you find that you’re managing artifacts more than you are actually fighting enemies.
So I propose that Hoyoverse give us the option to create custom artifact sets or templates that we can add to any character that we choose. It would make setting up for new challenges much more streamlined, and when the race is on to get a character before their banner ends, time is of the essence.
#7 – Food Buff Timers
- Change Type: UI/HUD
- Implementation Difficulty: 2/10
Do you know what’s great? Being able to artificially up your stats to take on enemies that are otherwise damage sponges. Food items can help you travel longer distances faster, hit harder, take more hits, and increase the likelihood of landing a killer blow in the form of critical hits. Food is great. Do you know what’s not great?
The fact that you aren’t able to see how long the effect you just applied is going to last for, which can lead to situations in a battle where you are banking on your buff to carry you, only for it to run out. Then you miss your chance to reapply, and hey presto, you respawn at the Statue of the Seven, wondering where it all went wrong.
There is such as easy solution. Simply add a buff timer to the HUD, which will give players a clear indication of what buff is applied and how long they have to take advantage of the buff. I can’t tell you how many battles this would have swung in my favor!
#8 – Artifact Rerolls
- Change Type: Content
- Implementation Difficulty: 3/10
There are a lot of areas in Genshin Impact where RNG can dictate whether your gaming session will be a joyous one, or one filled with pain and regret. Wishing on banners can see you lose your 50/50, and repeated boss battles may never reward you with the materials and items that you want. However, I would argue that the worst example of RNG ruining the Genshin experience is in the form of Artifact Substats.
When you get an Artifact that you know works with the team comp, that’s one battle won. However, if you don’t get the substat rolls you need to make it a long-term option, then you might as well head to the boss and start grinding again
. So my question is, why isn’t there a consumable within the game that allows you to reroll on Substats to refine your existing materials, rather than have the sub-par rolls gather dust in your inventory?
Think of it like a dice roll in Genius Invokation. You get another chance to roll for better elements. Wouldn’t that be great for artifacts too? Maybe it’s wishful thinking because Hoyo wants to keep us grinding, but it would be a real game-changer for sure.
#9 – Artifact Trading
- Change Type: Content/Co-op
- Implementation Difficulty: 8/10
On the subject of Artifacts, it can be a real pain to go through the process of grinding bosses, Regisives, and Hypostasis for materials and artifacts. So what if players had the option to trade items with players in exchange for other items, or Mora?
We get that Hoyo would be reluctant to allow players to trade characters, skins, primogems, and other items that make up the game’s economy. However, Artifacts don’t really fall into that bracket.
This would be a great way to add an extra layer to the co-op experience and allow players to lean on others to build stronger builds without the need to fight the same boss thousands of times.
Then to expand on this, players could also have the option to gift players food and consumables, or give players their Resin if they were feeling super charitable.
Then this trading system could also be utilized in the new TCG mode. A player-driven economy would be such as incredible addition to Genshin, so fingers crossed we eventually get one.
#10 – An Event Vault
- Change Type: Content
- Implementation Difficulty: 9/10
As I said above, I arrived on the scene pretty late when it comes to Genshin, and this means that a lot of the in-game events that introduced characters, added important in-game lore, and offered intense and fun gameplay moments have passed me by. A great example is Fischl. She is such a jarring character who speaks funny, has a talking raven sidekick, and generally seems like an oddball in an already pretty zany world. Yet there is no story quest, encounters in the main storyline, or Hangout Quests that give you any info on her character, and I’ll be damned if I’m reading the archive.
This is the case for a lot of characters in Genshin, and even putting that to one side, these events provide some of the most memorable moments, awesome cut scenes, and lucrative rewards in the game. So why are they gone forever? It just seems cruel.
So what I propose is an event vault, where players can look back through the annals of Genshin history and replay older events. It would even be fine if there were no rewards on offer for playing these quests. The mere fact that we could witness them for ourselves without having to pull up a YouTube video from over two years ago would be rewarding enough.
#11 – Co-Op Spiral Abyss
- Change Type: Co-op Content
- Implementation Difficulty: 10/10
I’ve always felt that the co-op experience within Genshin is a little bit restrictive. Yes, you can jump into other players’ worlds, and you can grind materials, bosses, and domains. However, aside from that, the experience is a little underwhelming. You can’t team up for most of the main quests, some trounce domains are solo only, and the Spiral Abyss remains a mountain that you must climb alone.
So what I would love to see, is an overhaul to co-op in Genshin that allows for more freedom. However, this simply isn’t realistic. So instead, I propose that Hoyo introduce a new Co-op Abyss where players could team up, combine their respective character builds, and lay waste to all that stand in their way.
Granted, this new abyss would probably need to be much tougher than the existing one, and it would take a lot of testing to get the balance right without dismantling the current meta. However, I think this would be a worthwhile endeavor and a great way to keep long-time players invested in the game.
#12 – Pet The Animals
- Change Type: Animation
- Implementation Difficulty: 2/10
Then lastly, and arguably most importantly, why can we still not pet the animals in Genshin Impact? There are tonnes of Dogs, cats and critters dotted all over Teyvat, and I can’t give any of them little scratchies! If I can’t pet animals and give them belly rubs, then I don’t know if that’s a world I want to be a part of.
All I’m asking for is an animation that allows me to show some love to those cute little furry friends I encounter on my travels. It’s not too much to ask for. I mean, there is an entire Cat Cafe in Mondstadt that Hoyo is forcing me to attend to play Genius Invokation. So the least they could do is give me a chance to show love to all those lovely kitties. These are my terms, and I will not waver until every animal has received sufficient head scratches.
Honorable Mentions
I could have kept asking for things here, like a kid with the toy catalog circling lavish gifts for Santa to bring. However, I think I have highlighted the marquee changes that most of the community would want above all others.
That being said, there are also some smaller changes that would be great to see, so I’ll quickly list them down below before we all go back to grinding for primogems:
- More variety of map markers
- Remove all map markers button
- Shield strength/duration on HUD
- Ability to Toggle Traveler abilities without visiting the Statue of the Seven
- Piamon Mute Button
FAQ Section
Question: What Character is Coming Next?
Answer: At the time of writing, the featured character banners are for Xiao and Alhaitham. Now, obviously, we can’t say for sure who will be in the next banner, but if we had to make an educated guess. We reckon it will be Deyha.
Question: Is It MiHoYo or Hoyoverse?
Answer: It’s Hoyoverse, but I understand the confusion. In May 2022, MiHoYo decided to rebrand the company, thus changing its name to Hoyoverse. This rebrand was for all content outside of China, and within China, the company still operates under the name MiHoYo. Confused? Yeah, us too.Â
Question: Why Can’t We Have More Resin?
Answer: In a word, money. Genshin actually began proceedings by only offering players a 120 Resin cap, which will still give day-one players nightmares. Hoyoverse had responded to low resin claims before and upped the cap to 160. However, we would say it’s pretty unlikely that the company will tweak this again.
After all, more Resin means less grinding, and less grinding means less spending on microtransactions. As much as we like to believe that developers want to look after their players, they also want our cash. So don’t expect a Resin bump any time soon.Â
Hear Our Plea, Hoyoverse!
As you can see from the list of realistic proposed changes above, there are quite a few things that Hoyoverse could do to make Genshin a much more refined, user-friendly, and fun experience for all types of players. While some of these changes are slightly nit-picky.
There are quite a few changes that we simply can’t believe are still absent in 2023. Genshin is a certified world-beater within the gaming industry, and the profit the game makes is astronomical, so surely the developers could pump a little more cash into the project and make our wishes come true.
My wish luck has been pretty good on banners, but this would take it to a whole new level. We hope you hear our call Hoyoverse, and as always, thank you for reading Genshin Chronicle!
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