So, I decided to dip my toes back into Genshin Impact the other day. It’s been a long while, maybe over a year? Felt like coming back home after a really, really long trip, only the locks were changed and someone painted the house a weird color.
First thing, the updates. Man, the download took forever. Sat there watching the bar crawl across the screen. Made a coffee, came back, still going. It wasn’t just a quick patch, felt like downloading the whole thing again almost. Already felt kinda draining before I even got in.
Getting Back In
Finally loaded it up. Logged in. And just… stood there. In Mondstadt, I think? Everything looked familiar, but also… not quite. The sheer amount of icons flashing on the screen was crazy. New events, new mail, some returning player thingy popped up immediately. Felt like getting bombarded.
I tried to remember what I was even doing last time. Looked at my quest log. A mess. Old quests I never finished, new world quests popping up just by walking a few feet. It was overwhelming, honestly. Where do I even start?
My old team felt weak, somehow. Probably power creep, new monsters, I don’t know. Went to do a daily commission, got my butt handed to me by some random fungi I’d never seen before. That was humbling.
The Grind… Again?
So, the plan became just… wander. Explore a bit. See what’s new. But even that felt slow. The map is huge now. Sumeru? Fontaine? Places I hadn’t even touched. Felt like I missed entire chapters.
Tried pulling for a new character everyone was talking about. Used up the few wishes I had saved. Got nothing, naturally. That old familiar gacha sting. It reminded me why I stopped playing in the first place, maybe.
It wasn’t just the game, though. It was me too. I don’t have the same hours to sink into it like before. Back then, I could grind for hours. Now? Maybe an hour here or there. So progress feels incredibly slow. Like trying to fill a swimming pool with a teaspoon.
- Check daily login.
- Attempt commissions (struggle included).
- Maybe chip away at one old quest step.
- Look at the giant map and feel tired.
- Log off.
That’s kinda the loop. It’s not bad, exactly. The world is still pretty. But it’s definitely a slow homecoming. Not the rush of excitement I remembered. More like a quiet, slightly confusing return to a place that moved on without you. Still figuring out if I’ll stick around this time or just visit occasionally.
