Genshin Impact is finally coming to Xbox after years of being on mobile, PC and PlayStation 5, all since 2021. Now, three years on, the game will finally be released on Xbox, as announced in August 2024. The game will be released on Xbox Series X|S on November 20, 2024.
In a discussion with Windows Central, HoYoVerse spoke about the deal with Xbox and the fact that Genshin Impact will have special in-game bundles on day one for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, as well as bundles available to subscribers in subsequent version updates. While Genshin Impact is coming to Xbox, it’s been officially confirmed that it won’t be coming to Xbox One, but it will be available to those on Xbox One by using Xbox Cloud Gaming. However, to play Genshin Impact through the Xbox Cloud Gaming, players will need an active Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to access it.
While most online games require you to have Xbox Game Pass Core (Xbox Live Gold), this game won’t. This is because it’s already a free-to-play game, which would make it a dangerous path to tread if they were to monetize the social aspects of the game. This was confirmed by a HoYoVerse representative after the Xbox website incorrectly cited that those wanting to participate in multiplayer gameplay in Genshin Impact would need Xbox Game Pass Core.
At the moment, it remains unknown what sort of bundles players can expect from seeing Genshin Impact on Xbox, specifically for those using it via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. It could be anything from Banner Pulls to Primogems or other basic consumables, but for now, it remains to be seen or revealed by HoYoVerse.
HoYoVerse has gone on to make many different gacha games, but Genshin Impact continues to be one of their most popular. Last year saw the release of Honkai: Star Rail, with this year seeing the release of Zenless Zone Zero, which is the most stark difference to Honkai: Star Rail and Genshin Impact, which have some crossovers and similarities in features.
With how popular Genshin Impact is, it continues to receive frequent updates, adding new areas and storylines for players to explore. The developers also continue to add new characters for people to love (or hate) and save up their Primogems to pull for them on their banners.
Whether the other HoYoVerse games will follow suit after Genshin Impact makes its way to Xbox Series X|S remains to be seen. The developers will probably discuss this once the statistics about the game’s performance on the new platform come out.
