The cast of characters in miHoYo's Genshin Impact hails from the continent of Teyvat, comprising seven nations: Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine, Natlan and Snezhnaya. Each nation is ruled by one of the seven Archons, each of whom controls one of the seven elements (corresponding to the nation list above): Anemo, Geo, Electro, Dendro, Hydro, Pyro, and Cryo. Nearly all playable characters control one of the elements with the help of a Vision, a device granted by the heavens to those with great ambitions, with the exception of a few characters who control the elements through their own supernatural powers, such as the Archons and the Traveler.

Design

Genshin Impact was first conceived as a manga, which introduced many of the characters of Mondstadt and the Fatui.^[1]

When designing the characters, the designers must first decide who the character is at its core and their needs, then they may design the character to fit that original idea and those needs.^[2] Designers may also consider the relation of a character to other characters in Teyvat; for example the elegant and reserved opera singer Yun Jin was designed to juxtaposition the fiery and unbound rock star Xinyan.^[3]

Many characters are derived from legends of certain nations- the adepti of Liyue, for example, are based off the Xian of Daoism. The idea of the Vision itself also derives from Daoism- the concept of a third eye manifests itself in humans as the form of the Vision they receive.^[2]

Characters

Playable

The following is a table that lists all currently confirmed playable characters by region, and in alphabetical order. All playable characters are associated with a specific region, with the exception of the Travelers and Aloy, who come from their own world.

All characters may use one of 5 weapon types: swords, polearms, claymores, bows, or catalysts. Characters come in 2 rarities: 4-star and 5-star rarity. 5-star characters have higher rarity than 4-star characters.

Unknown

Name	Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
English
Aloy	Cryo	Bow	Ayahi Takagaki Giselle Fernandez	A collaboration character between miHoYo and Horizon Zero Dawn developer Guerrilla Games.	Playable
Aether	Changeable	Sword	Shun Horie[4] Zach Aguilar[5]	The main Traveler in the game. At the beginning of the story, the two twins were separated when they encountered an Unknown God, the main antagonist. The gender of the Traveler is selected at the start of the game.	Main Character
Lumine			Aoi Yuki Sarah Miller-Crews

Mondstadt

Mondstadt was released in September 2020.

Name	Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
Albedo	Geo	Sword	Kenji Nojima Khoi Dao	Award-winning lead alchemist in the Knights of Favonius in Mondstadt.	Playable
Amber	Pyro	Bow	Manaka Iwami Kelly Baskin	The Outrider of the Knights of Favonius. She is the first playable character that players obtain in the game.	Playable
Barbara	Hydro	Catalyst	Akari Kitō Laura Stahl	The Deaconess at the Favonius Church and the younger sister of Jean. She is obtainable after completing the prologue of Genshin Impact.	Playable
Bennett	Pyro	Sword	Ryōta Ōsaka Cristina Vee	A member of the Mondstadt Adventurer's Guild, well-known for his almost supernaturally bad luck.	Playable
Diluc	Pyro	Claymore	Kensho Ono Sean Chiplock	A rich businessman and vintner. He and Kaeya grew up as adopted brothers, however, the two are no longer on friendly terms.	Playable
Diona	Cryo	Bow	Shiori Izawa Dina Sherman, Jackie Lastra (formerly)	An alcohol-hating bartender working at the Cat's Tail, a competitor to Angel's Share.	Playable
Eula	Cryo	Claymore	Rina Satō Suzie Yeung	A descendent of the Lawrence Clan in Mondstadt, whose tyrannical rule eventually resulted in the clan's overthrow and exile. She is currently working for the Knights of Favonius as the captain for its Reconnaissance Company.	Playable
Fischl	Electro	Bow	Maaya Uchida Brittany Cox	A pecular investigator of Mondstadt's Adventurer's Guild, who claims to be a princess from another world.	Playable
Jean	Anemo	Sword	Chiwa Saito Stephanie Southerland	The Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius.	Playable
Kaeya	Cryo	Sword	Kosuke Toriumi Josey Montana McCoy	A Cavalry Captain in the Knights of Favonius. He is the second playable character that players obtain in the game.	Playable
Klee	Pyro	Catalyst	Misaki Kuno Poonam Basu	The Spark Knight in the Knights of Favonius and the daughter of Alice. Her obsession with explosives at her young age has landed her in solitary confinement many times.	Playable
Lisa	Electro	Catalyst	Rie Tanaka Mara Junot	The head librarian at the Knights of Favonius library. She is the third playable character that players can obtain in the game.	Playable
Mona	Hydro	Catalyst	Konomi Kohara Felecia Angelle	A well-known astrologist in Mondstadt.	Playable
Noelle	Geo	Claymore	Kanon Takao Laura Faye Smith	A wannabe Knight of Favonius. Currently only a maid, she is working hard to get promoted to the ranks of Knight. One of the first characters that players can obtain.	Playable
Razor	Electro	Claymore	Koki Uchiyama Todd Haberkorn	A mysterious boy who was raised by the wolves in Wolvendom.	Playable
Rosaria	Cryo	Polearm	Ai Kakuma Elizabeth Maxwell	A sister in the Church of Favonius.	Playable
Sucrose	Anemo	Catalyst	Akane Fujita Valeria Rodriguez	An alchemist and assistant of leading alchemist Albedo. She wants to use alchemy to transform living beings.	Playable
Venti	Anemo	Bow	Ayumu Murase Erika Harlacher	One of the many bards in Mondstadt. Throughout the story, it is revealed that he is the Anemo Archon Barbatos.	Playable	[6]

Liyue

Liyue was released in September 2020.

Name		Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
English	Chinese
Beidou	北斗 (pinyin: Běidǒu; Wade–Giles: Pei-tou)	Electro	Claymore	Ami Koshimizu Allegra Clark	The Captain of the Crux fleet of ships in Liyue.	Playable
Chongyun	重云 (pinyin: Chóngyún; Wade–Giles: Ch'ung-yun)	Cryo	Claymore	Soma Saito Beau Bridgland	An exorcist in Liyue with a pure-yang spirit able to drive away other evil spirits.	Playable
Ganyu	甘雨 (pinyin: Gānyǔ; Wade–Giles: Kan-yu)	Cryo	Bow	Reina Ueda Jennifer Losi	The half-qilin secretary of the Liyue Qixing.	Playable
Hu Tao	胡桃 (pinyin: Hútáo; Wade–Giles: Hu-tao)	Pyro	Polearm	Rie Takahashi Brianna Knickerbocker	The 77th Director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.	Playable
Keqing	刻晴 (pinyin: Kèqíng; Wade–Giles: Ke-ching)	Electro	Sword	Eri Kitamura Kayli Mills	A member of the Liyue Qixing, the organization that presides over Liyue.	Playable
Ningguang	凝光 (pinyin: Níngguāng; Wade–Giles: Ning-kuang)	Geo	Catalyst	Sayaka Ohara Erin Ebers	Owner of the Jade Chamber and a wealthy businesswoman who is also one of the Liyue Qixing.	Playable
Qiqi	七七 (pinyin: Qīqī; Wade–Giles: Ch'i-ch'i)	Cryo	Sword	Yukari Tamura Christie Cate	A jiangshi herb gatherer at Bubu Pharmacy who was resurrected from the dead by the adepti.	Playable
Shenhe	申鹤 (pinyin: Shēnhè; Wade–Giles: Shên-ho)	Cryo	Polearm	Ayako Kawasumi Chelsea Kwoka	A cursed human woman who grew up as the disciple of the adepti and aunt of Chongyun.	Playable
Xiangling	香菱 (pinyin: Xiānglíng; Wade–Giles: Hsiang-ling)	Pyro	Polearm	Ari Ozawa Jackie Lastra	The head chef at Wanmin Restaurant in Liyue Harbor. Players can obtain this character by completing a certain quest.	Playable
Xiao	魈 (pinyin: Xiāo; Wade–Giles: Hsiao)	Anemo	Polearm	Yoshitsugu Matsuoka Laila Berzins	The last of the Yakshas: supernatural beings tasked with protecting Liyue from evil gods and spirits.	Playable
Xingqiu	行秋 (pinyin: Xíngqiū; Wade–Giles: Hsing-chiu)	Hydro	Sword	Junko Minagawa Cristina Vee	The second son of the Feiyun Commerce Guild and a practitioner of Guhua martial arts.	Playable
Xinyan	辛焱 (pinyin: Xīnyàn; Wade–Giles: Hsing-yan)	Pyro	Claymore	Chiaki Takahashi Laura Stahl	A popular rock-n-roll musician in Liyue Harbor.	Playable
Yanfei	烟绯 (pinyin: Yānfēi; Wade–Giles: Yan-fei)	Pyro	Catalyst	Yumiri Hanamori Lizzie Freeman	A half-xiezhi, she is a highly-skilled legal adviser in Liyue Harbor.	Playable
Yelan	夜兰 (pinyin: Yèlán; Wade–Giles: Ye-lan)	Hydro	Bow	Aya Endō Laura Post	A mysterious official working in a Liyue ministry.	Playable
Yun Jin	云堇 (pinyin: Yún jǐn; Wade–Giles: Yun chin)	Geo	Polearm	Kotori Koiwai Judy Alice Lee	A very popular opera singer of the Heyu Tea House.	Playable
Zhongli	钟离 (pinyin: Zhōnglí; Wade–Giles: Chung-li)	Geo	Polearm	Tomoaki Maeno Keith Silverstein	Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's consultant. In the story, it is revealed that he is the Geo Archon Morax.	Playable

Inazuma

Inazuma was released in July 2021.^[7]

Name		Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
English	Japanese
Arataki Itto	荒瀧一斗 (Arataki Itto)	Geo	Claymore	Takanori Nishikawa Max Mittelman	A mischievous oni and leader of the Arataki Gang.	Playable
Gorou	ゴロー (Gorō)	Geo	Bow	Tasuku Hatanaka Cory Yee	A general of the Sangonomiya resistance army, fighting to overturn some of Inazuma's policies.	Playable
Kaedehara Kazuha	楓原万葉 (Kaedehara Kazuha)	Anemo	Sword	Nobunaga Shimazaki Mark Whitten	A ronin and poet who becomes a member of Beidou's Crux fleet.	Playable
Kamisato Ayaka	神里綾華 (Kamisato Ayaka)	Cryo	Sword	Saori Hayami Erica Mendez	Representative of the Yashiro Commission and Lady of the Kamisato House.	Playable	[8]
Kamisato Ayato	神里綾人 (Kamisato Ayato)	Hydro	Sword	Akira Ishida Chris Hackney	Chief of the Yashiro Commission and Ayaka's brother.	Playable
Kujou Sara	九条裟羅 (Kujō Sara)	Electro	Bow	Asami Seto Jeannie Tirado	A tengu, war general, and adopted daughter of the Kujou Clan, a clan that serves the Shogun and helps execute her policies.	Playable
Kuki Shinobu	久岐忍 (Kuki Shinobu)	Electro	Sword	Kaori Mizuhashi Kira Buckland	Deputy of Arataki Itto's Arataki Gang.	Playable
Raiden Shogun	雷電将軍 (Raiden Shōgun)	Electro	Polearm	Miyuki Sawashiro Anne Yatco	The vessel of the Electro Archon Beelzebul, as well as the current shogun over Inazuma.	Playable
Sangonomiya Kokomi	珊瑚宮心海 (Sangonomiya Kokomi)	Hydro	Catalyst	Suzuko Mimori Risa Mei	The leader of the Sangonomiya resistance army and Divine Priestess of Watatsumi Island.	Playable
Sayu	早柚 (Sayu)	Anemo	Claymore	Aya Suzaki LilyPichu	A mujina ninja associated with the Shuumatsuban, an organization secretly ran by Kamisato Ayato.	Playable	[9]
Shikanoin Heizou	鹿野院平蔵 (Shikanoin Heizō)	Anemo	Catalyst	Yūichi Iguchi Kieran Regan	A detective of the Tenryou Commission.	Playable
Thoma	トーマ (Tōma)	Pyro	Polearm	Masakazu Morita Christian Banas	The chief retainer of the Kamisato Clan.	Playable	[10]
Yae Miko	八重神子 (Yae Miko)	Electro	Catalyst	Ayane Sakura Ratana	A kitsune, owner of the Yae Publishing House and the head shrine maiden of the Grand Narukami shrine.	Playable
Yoimiya	宵宮 (Yoimiya)	Pyro	Bow	Kana Ueda Jenny Yokobori	Owner of Naganohara Fireworks.	Playable	[11]

Sumeru

Sumeru was released in August 2022, and introduced the Dendro element to the game.^[12]

Name	Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
Candace	Hydro	Polearm	Ryoka Yuzuki Shara Kirby	The steadfast guardian of Aaru Village.	Playable
Collei	Dendro	Bow	Ryōko Maekawa Christina Costello	An Avidya Forest Ranger trainee under Tighnari's mentorship. Players may obtain this character by completing a certain quest.	Playable
Cyno	Electro	Polearm	Miyu Irino Alejandro Saab	The intimidating General Mahamatra of the Sumeru Akademiya.	Playable
Dori	Electro	Claymore	Tomoko Kaneda Anjali Kunapaneni	Sumeru's most resourceful merchant, whether it's the rare gems in the world rare medicinal herbs, or strange props that no one has heard of, she has a way to get them.	Playable
Faruzan	Anemo	Unknown	Unknown Unknown	A mechanics professor at the Sumeru Akademiya.	Upcoming
Layla	Cryo	Sword	Miyu Tomita Ashely Biski	A theoretical astrologist at the Sumeru Akademiya.	Upcoming
Nahida	Dendro	Catalyst	Yukari Tamura Kimberley Anne Campbell	The vessel of the Dendro Archon of Sumeru.	Playable
Nilou	Hydro	Sword	Hisako Kanemoto Dani Chambers	A naive, talented dancer and star of the Zubayr Theater.	Playable
Tighnari	Dendro	Bow	Sanae Kobayashi Elliot Gindi	An Avidya Forest Ranger Captain, with a stern attitude.	Playable
Wanderer	Anemo	Unknown	Tetsuya Kakihara Patrick Pedraza	Formerly the 6th Fatui Harbinger Scaramouche; he was created by Raiden Ei as a prototype for her mortal vessel before she abandoned him.	Upcoming

Snezhnaya

Name	Element	Weapon	Voice Actor	Description	Status	Citations
Tartaglia	Hydro	Bow	Ryōhei Kimura Griffin Burns	The Eleventh of the Fatui Harbingers.	Playable

Non-playable characters

Non-playable characters include:

• Unknown God (Japanese: 見知らぬ神, romanized: Mishiranu Kami, Chinese: 陌生的神灵; pinyin: Mòshēng de Shénlíng; Wade–Giles: Mo-sheng te Shen-ling, Voice actor: Rie Kugimiya, Christie Cate), the God at the beginning of the game who fights the Traveler and abducts their sibling, thus beginning the Traveler's journey through Teyvat to find their sibling.
• Traveler's sibling: The twin sibling of the Traveler, who was separated from them at the beginning of the game by the Unknown God. Depending on the player's choice of their Traveler's gender, the Traveler's sibling becomes either a male named Aether or a female named Lumine. Notably, regardless of the player's customizable name, the Traveler's sibling refers to the Traveler as either Aether or Lumine, depending on the player's chosen gender for the Traveler.
• Katheryne (Japanese: キャサリン, romanized: Kyasarin, Chinese: 凯瑟琳; pinyin: Kǎisèlín; Wade–Giles: Kaisê-lin, Voice actor: Mai Sato, Erica Mendez^[13]), receptionist of the Adventurer's Guild. It is revealed in the Sumeru chapter that Katheryne is a bionic puppet made in Snezhnaya.
• Paimon (Japanese: パイモン, romanized: Paimon, Chinese: 派蒙; pinyin: Pàiméng; Wade–Giles: P'ai-mêng, Voice actor: Aoi Koga, Corina Boettger) is the Traveler's guide and accomplice. As the Traveler is a silent protagonist, Paimon speaks for the Traveler for most of the game.
• Several Fatui Harbingers:
  • La Signora (Japanese: シニョーラ/淑女, romanized: Shinyōra/Shukujo, Chinese: 女士; pinyin: Nǚshì; Wade–Giles: Nu-shi; lit. 'The Fair Lady', Voice actor: Yui Shoji, Unknown), #8 of the Fatui Harbingers, the organization serving the Tsaritsa of the nation Snezhnaya. She steals Venti's Gnosis and bargains with Zhongli for his Gnosis, as the Tsaritsa desires to collect all Archons' Gnoses. After she helps to incite turmoil and a civil war in the nation of Inazuma, the Traveler challenges her to a duel, which leads to her execution by the Raiden Shogun.
  • Il Dottore, (Japanese: ドットーレ, romanized: Dottōre, Chinese: 多托雷; pinyin: Duōtuōléi; Wade–Giles: Tot'o-li, Voice actor: Toshihiko Seki, Mick Wingert) #2 of the Fatui Harbingers. He is a mad scientist and the main antagonist of the Sumeru chapter.
• Baizhu (Japanese: 白朮, romanized: Byakujutsu, Chinese: 白术; pinyin: Báizhú; Wade–Giles: Pai-chu, "Atractylodes macrocephala") (Voice actor: Koji Yusa, Unknown), the mysterious boss of Bubu Pharmacy in Liyue. He was the first character with a Dendro Vision encountered by the Traveler. His companion is a white snake named Changsheng (长生, "Long life"). He is in pursuit of longevity and eternal life, and for this reason took in and protects the zombie Qiqi.
• Dainsleif (Japanese: ダインスレイヴ, romanized: Dainsureivu, Chinese: 戴因斯雷布; pinyin: Dàiyīnsīléibù; Wade–Giles: Taiyuissŭ-leipu, Voice actor: Kenjiro Tsuda, Yuri Lowenthal), a wandering man from the fallen civilization of Khaenri'ah, cursed with immortality for failing to protect the citizens of Khaenri'ah. He leads the Traveler to temporarily reunite with their sibling.
• Rhinedottir, an alchemist from Khaenri'ah and creator of Albedo, the dragon Durin, and riftwolves that plague Teyvat.
• Alice (Japanese: アリス, romanized: Arisu, Chinese: 艾莉丝; pinyin: Àilìsī; Wade–Giles: Aili-ssŭ, Voice actor: Kikuko Inoue, Unknown), mother of Klee, an extraordinarily powerful traveler.

Reception

The characters of Genshin Impact enjoyed positive reception, specifically in terms of revenue (as Genshin Impact is a gacha game, much of its revenue comes from sales of in-game currency that players use to pull for characters). Character's revenues come from limited-time events, colloquially known as 'wishes', where players have a boosted chance to win a character. Across all platforms (including mobile, console and computer platforms), the game is estimated to have grossed nearly $3.7 billion in its first year by September 2021, the highest ever first-year launch revenue for any video game.^[14][15][16] The mobile version grossed a further $567 million between January and March 2022,^[17] adding up to more than $4.267 billion grossed as of March 2022^[update].

Some characters enjoyed massive popularity, such as the Raiden Shogun, whose first banner earned the highest 2-day revenue at the time in the game, at $9M.^[18] Although it is impossible to calculate the full revenue across all platforms where Genshin Impact is available, certain numbers are available. As of March 2021, the character Zhongli was the highest grossing character, with $15.5M reported in revenue at the time.^[19]

Controversy

In November 2020, the game was met with controversy during a character's release, Zhongli, due to his gameplay and kit being viewed as poor to the point where it was taken as an insult toward Chinese players. miHoYo initially replied to the controversy regarding the character, saying that it was working as intended and there should not be any worry over that.^[20] Later, miHoYo issued an apology, and promised to improve the character's kit, through beta testing for version 1.3.^[21]

In April 2021, some called for a boycott of the game over claims of bigotry in the game's content.^[22][23] Some other users pointed out how the only playable characters with dark skin were described as "exotic" or "scary" in the game.^[23] Criticism was also aimed at one of the game's adult characters expressing love towards another character that appears to be a child, though this may have been an oversight as the character in question was noted to have used an adult model during earlier stages of development.^[22][23]

In June 2022, following leaks of character designs from the area of Sumeru, Genshin Impact was accused of colourism by many of its fans. Sumeru takes inspiration from many North African, West Asian, and South Asian cultures, with a great variety of skin tones ranging from pale to very dark being found among the people of these cultures. However, the characters of Sumeru were designed with predominantly pale or light brown skin. Since Genshin Impact's playable characters are designed for attractiveness and marketability, this could lead to the assumption that the developers of Genshin Impact consider darker skin "uglier" and "not marketable enough".^[24][25][26]

References