Before game studio Mihoyo started raking in millions every month from a Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild derivative, it was already enjoying success in another gacha game, namely Honkai Impact 3rd. Honkai Impact also has a similar art style to Genshin, and the core system of incentivizing play by introducing awesome new characters in a lottery system is alike in both games.
The problem right now is that both games are grindy and will consume a big chunk of your day. Choosing where to devote your precious game time is quite the conundrum as both games are good and readily available across multiple platforms. So, we're here to help you decide which between Mihoyo's prized anime video games is worth dumping your time, money, and hopes into, or more specifically, which among the two is more impactful.
10 General Gameplay: Genshin Impact
No contest here. Genshin Impact took away from the best after all. Its main model template is none other than a multiple Game of the Year awardee. As such, Genshin Impact simply has more variety when it comes to gameplay.
If you're not killing faceless ugly monsters or beasts, then you're either exploring, rock climbing, cooking, or gliding. There's tons of stuff to do in Genshin Impact thanks to the open-world structure. For many, it's even hard to believe that the game actually fits in a mobile phone given how vast it is in terms of play space.
9 Combat: Honkai Impact
With that said, Genshin Impact takes a rather slow approach to one aspect of its gameplay, namely combat. Character skill variety is a little lacking and you'll notice similar abilities with different coats of paint among them. Additionally, the fighting is just not as exhilarating as Honkai Impact 3rd's electrifyingly fast combat.
Honkai Impact 3rd's characters move faster and have more combos than Genshin Impact's rather simple and labored elemental system. The game also penalizes high-damage attacks and weapons by making them slow.
8 Graphics: Genshin Impact
Both games actually look more or less identical when it comes to character or enemy models. However, Genshin Impact is an open-world game and is thus more impressive with the amount of detail it allows in its game environment.
Everything from the grass to mountains and even the structures are impressive in Genshin Impact. The fact that you can scale them too like in Breath of the Wild is truly astounding for a video game that can fit in a phone. It makes going back to Honkai Impact 3rd's instanced environments a bit difficult.
7 Music: Tie
Each game has a different aesthetic when it comes to music because one is medieval fantasy and the other is sci-fi. Genshin Impact's tranquil tones and orchestral scores add much to its atmosphere and the feeling of a mystical world.
Meanwhile, Honkai Impact 3rd's bombastic beats and reverberating rhythms make something as mundane as logging into the lobby a welcome experience. Truth be told, it's hard to judge either so this one's a tie.
6 Story: Genshin Impact
Since Honkai Impact 3rd is a sci-fi game, you can expect its story to be as convoluted as possible. In hindsight, it's actually simple; a secret group consisting of gacha characters is on an ongoing war against old monsters that caused a catastrophe. The dialogue makes it more complex than that.
Genshin Impact, however, handles its story and premise with better care. It's easy to become invested in the world and each new update brings some story developments that are eagerly awaited by the community. It's also not as outrageous or as outlandish as Honkai Impact 3rd's overblown sci-fi plot.
5 Characters: Genshin Impact
![Fischl-Flying-Albedo-Genshin-Impact[1]](https://static1.thegamerimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Fischl-Flying-Albedo-Genshin-Impact1.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=740&dpr=1.5)
Another factor for Genshin Impact's better and more digestible story is its characters. In Honkai Impact 3rd, there's no male playable character which limits options for players.
Genshin Impact is more serious with its characters. Each one of them has quirks and personalities that are distinct from one another. Their relationships and treatment of the player character are also more nuanced and more human compared to Honkai Impact 3rd.
4 Presentation: Tie
When it comes to cinematic flair and feeding the game to the players, both games handle it differently. Honkai Impact 3rd relies more on its anime-style cinematics and narratives. Regardless, it's a lot more energetic and dumps you straight into the action.
Genshin Impact takes a subtler approach and immediately shows the players that there's more to the game than just action. It also has some artistic storytelling sections that appear like children's storybooks. Overall both games excel in their own ideas so it's a hard call, making it a tie.
3 Multiplayer: Genshin Impact
Both Honkai Impact 3rd and Genshin Impact have multiplayer segments and they're not that necessary or extensive for you to enjoy the game. They more like bonuses. Still, of the two, Genshin Impact's multiplayer is more endearing and social.
Genshin Impact has some notably difficult bosses and dungeon segments, making multiplayer a substantial feature for those traversing the current endgame. Moreover, the element system in the combat makes multiplayer more fun and synergistic.
2 Gachapon: Tie
Now comes a unique point of comparison between the two games, the gacha system. It's pretty much a gumball lottery where the gumballs are characters. In both games, the rates are discouragingly low, at least that's the general consensus of the community for both.
The rarest characters have only a 0.6 percent drop rate to ensure that getting who you want is a matter of extreme luck. Either game doesn't compel you to spend just to gamble though and free-to-play players can get by without spending a buck. This one's also a tie.
1 Winner: Genshin Impact
After much deliberation, it's clear which between Mihoyo's two most popular games is better. Genshin Impact is newer and more novel as an experience. While the combat is slow, it pulls ahead or matches Honkai Impact 3rd in nearly everything else.
The main strengths of Genshin Impact against Honkai Impact 3rd are the graphics, the story, and the open-world which are honestly tough to beat. So if you're already enjoying your comfy perch in Genshin Impact, there's no need to try out Honkai Impact 3rd to see if it's better. It's not like your gacha luck will improve there anyway.