Developing video games is difficult work -- there's the understatement of the year. Developing a contemporary, cross-platform, online JRPG with full voice acting in multiple languages? Sounds like a back-breaking challenge, metaphorically speaking. For all of the quirks and bugs that Genshin Impact had at launch, it's still a small miracle that the game launched without being outright broken.
QA teams, beta tests, etc... developers have a lot of tricks up their sleeves to help streamline launches and expansions. A result of these experimental phases is that, oftentimes unused assets that need to be tested and re-tested before being fully implemented, are buried within a game's source code for safekeeping until the devs are ready to let the end-user access that content.
The idea of buried treasure within a game's files is too tantalizing for data miners to leave alone. Here are some of the most interesting finds from Genshin Impact data miners. Do keep in mind that all of these are subject to change by the time they're released.
10 Hu Tao Card
The impending release of highly anticipated waifu Hu Tao has cleaved the fan base in twain. Will she or won't she drop within patch 1.3? Place your bets now. However, one thing is certain: this pyro/polearm is definitely on her way as confirmed by the discovery of her friendship name card.
But that hasn't stopped the formation of a third faction in the "when will Hu Tao arrive" feud. The Hu Tao deniers are a group of rabble-rousing meme-lords who get a kick out of claiming that Hu Tao will never be released... gotta stave off boredom somehow it seems.
9 Yunjin Information
Precious little is known about Yunjin, an opera singer from the Heyu Tea House, aside from the fact that -- surprisingly -- she and Xinyan are mutual fans of each other's art.
The community has long since dug up the suspected weapon and element type for all of the upcoming leaked characters. But the reason why this is still considered an "unknown" is because miHoYo likes to alter characters last minute. For instance, a previous leak included a now-disproved bow-touting Albedo. For now, Yunjin is a suspected geo/polearm user.
8 Banner Predictions
The banner pictured above is old news at this point. But back when it was news, the four-star characters pictured alongside Childe had been announced not through miHoYo official channels but rather through a Reddit post by a data miner.
Does this mean all future banners can be discovered by sifting through source code? Of course not, but it's cool that it happened once and fans wouldn't mind it happening again. What's next on the docket according to web sleuths? A Venti re-release featuring Rosaria. Start saving those primos.
7 Yao Yao
At the moment, Yao Yao lives exclusively in artwork and in references from other characters' voice lines. You won't find her roaming Teyvat yet, but it should be safe to bet on her taking over your co-op parties whenever she does drop. Why is Yao Yao set to be a big deal?
Because she's the only leaked upcoming character rumored to wield the dendro element. That is yet to be fully added to the game, making Yao Yao the first of her kind. Her green outfit lends credence to the rumor that she's a dendro/catalyst fighter; hopefully, that doesn't change between now and her launch.
6 Ayaka Profile
Ayaka is the most bizarrely handled character to date. No one really knows what miHoYo plans to do with her. Like the recently released Xiao, Ayaka's first beta test ran before the main game had even launched. Also like Xiao, she was added to the game's website in preparation for said launch. But unlike Xiao, she was unceremoniously removed from the website when neither character was included in the 1.0 version of the game. Curiously, Xiao remained on the site.
There's plenty of footage of Ayaka in combat on youtube. It looks like she's ready to drop any minute, but miHoYo is likely keeping her until the Inazuma expansion. A hint in one of Sucrose's lines suggests that we'll meet Ayaka on March 17. That almost seems too close to be true given that we haven't heard any hype yet.
5 Mimi Hypothetical Designs
Thanks to prolific data miner and Twitter leaker Lumie, fans have an even more accurate idea of what supposed hydro/catalyst Mimi will look like at launch. Previously mined character models had been leaked without the use of Genshin's signature shaders to provide that anime aesthetic. Lumie's team works to bring you fully shaded models.
Though news of a third hydro/catalyst isn't the most exciting, the fact that neither Mimi's name nor outfit appears to fit with Liyue or Mondstadt styles may suggest that she'll launch with another map expansion.
4 Upcoming Artifacts
Cryo-mains better stock up on fragile resins because it looks like more loot is coming your way. Again, this is just what data miners suggest, so set your expectations accordingly.
There's little in the way of evidence to go off of with this one aside from a Reddit post. But, if the leaks are true, then either Rosaria or Ayaka (or both) will drop with some complimentary loot in the next couple of months just like Ganyu did when she launched.
3 Kazuha Mysteries
Kazuha, affectionately nicknamed "Aether-but-red" by the community, is the only character on this list who's more mysterious than Yunjin.
The name suggests that Kazuha calls Inazuma home. Apparently, there's also an anemo vision on the model's back that makes the semblance to Aether even more strange. Not much else is known so far.
2 Rosaria Talents
Rosaria is another upcoming character that has stoked community interest. Excessive fan service has been known to correlate directly with increased hype in the fan base. Who knew? The well-endowed femme fatale type Rosaria is built for assassinations.
Her passive talents make your party move quicker at night while her skill allows her to teleport behind an enemy and strike with bonus CRIT % when hitting their back. Her burst even deals cryo damage while boosting the CRIT % of nearby party members.
1 Shen He Model
This is another leaked model courtesy of Lumie and company. So far, players haven't heard the name Shen He mentioned anywhere in Genshin, but that doesn't mean they didn't meet her already. When this data mine was brand new, there was some confusion surrounding the names Shen Li and Shen He -- many attributed the former to the model shown above.
But bilingual readers realized that Shen Li was just a transliteration of Ayaka's surname (Kamisato) in Mandarin, so these files likely weren't for a yet unknown character. Shen He, on the other hand, is said to mean "God Bird." Is this the sassy stork Adeptus Cloud Retainer inhabiting a human form? The wing-like shape of her sleeves makes that explanation believable.