I’ve been playing a lot of Genshin Impact. I can’t really explain why either. This isn’t a game that I’d usually sink hours into, but it’s one that I seem to continue to do so in. It’s all about anime characters and a completely bonkers story. If it wasn’t free, I’d probably avoid it. However, since it is free-to-play, I gave it a go. That’s where my free time has been going, and to be honest I don’t regret any of it. While the game is fun, I have recently come across a barrier to progress, and I just wanted to put something out there for everyone else who will eventually hit it.
The barrier is simply a point in the game when your Adventurer Rank, the account level in the game, peaks at Rank 9. I needed to get to Rank 10 in order to open up more missions, but the only way to do that was lengthy exploration. I could have opted for what amounts to a battle pass, which would have sped up my progress to the next level, but for science, I wanted to see how long and boring the process was. The answer is, it’s not that bad.
It probably took me two hours to accumulate the experience I needed to get to the next Adventurer Rank. During this time I force myself to explore the absolute outer limits of the map. At least the ones available to me at the time. I came across new locations that were filled with interesting bits of lore, characters, and of course a bunch of super-tough enemies. Fighting these enemies was probably the highlight of this exploration time. They were all very challenging, and it forced me to work on using synergies with each character much more.
I also finally jumped on that first discounted Wish that the game offers you. I earned all the currency just by playing the game, so I didn’t spend any real cash. It netted me a new character and some powerful gear, but really it was just something else to do.
As I said, eventually I did get to Adventurer Rank 10, but the time I spent getting there showed me how much I really do enjoy this game. Playing it with the sound off while something else is going on, music or a TV show is a great way to do stuff while the game itself isn’t entirely engrossing. I feel like this is going to be something I play for years to come after getting through this initial barrier.