As one might imagine, there tends to be some overlap between Genshin Impact fans and anime-loving communities. The MMORPG, heavily influenced by Breath of the Wild and countless other RPGs, features a spectrum of anime-adjacent characters for gamers to team up and adventure with.
Needless to say, fans of the game have quickly begun ranking the Genshin Impact characters in a variety of ways too. Some prefer utility and power, but others are simply in it for the aesthetics, which is understandable given characters like Klee.
Gamers have been quick to share memes and captions from the game, especially those highlighting important Genshin Impact discoveries, but the original creations that anime fandoms are notorious for have been slow to emerge. Now that the game's had a month or so to breathe, those dedicated fans have started to let their creative juices flow.
Redditors and Genshin Impact fans are coming together to comment on a series of incredible fan-made "Opening Themes" to miHoYo's surprise hit. The videos make use of in-game cinematic footage and the like to create the sensation of an anime-style Opening Theme sequence, and they do an excellent job of underscoring the game's characters, conflicts, and relationships.
Redditor u/MarcaroniX made use of BLUE ENCOUNT's song, "Polaris," which was the Opening Theme to My Hero Academia's fourth season, while u/Masterheuheu joined in on the fun with their own submission, using BACK-ON's "wimp ft. Lil' Fang" (originally the second Opening Theme for Gundam Build Fighters (2013).)
Of course, neither of these songs were initially written with any regard to Genshin Impact, but nonetheless, they fit the mold wonderfully. Most importantly, fan videos like these help draw out the emotional investment that players have already made in the game's characters. Even newer players are probably familiar with titans like the five-star Diluc, despite not having them, simply because of their overwhelming popularity. Now, though in-game cutscenes, dialogue, and cinematics, all contribute to a popular character's development, creative endeavors like these videos can help understand the value of thoughtful presentation.
That is to say, all of the elements in these videos (except for the songs) are already in Genshin Impact, yet when seen in this form, they seem to evoke a thrilling fan-reaction greater than that of the game's existing scenes. So in other words, miHoYo has much to glean from these fan contributions.
While music videos, non-story missions, and flavor text, are all irrelevant to "winning" the game, and may seem like distractions, dedicated gamers have been transparent about their devotion to adorable icons like Paimon and Klee. Those same gamers would probably be more than glad to dive deeper into the intricate Genshin Impact lore, if miHoYo were to allow it.
Genshin Impact is available now on the App Store, Google Play, and PS4.
Source: u/Masterheuheu, u/MarcaroniX | Reddit