Hu Tao is the latest character to be added to Genshin Impact, but it doesn’t seem like she’ll be a popular arrival amongst the cast. With the fans, it’ll all come down to how useful she is in battle and how easy her ascension is, but with over a million fans watching her reveal trailer in just seven hours, she’s definitely starting off on the right foot. I’m not sure she’ll oust Diluc as the best Pyro fighter in the game, but I think she’ll be able to carve out a niche for herself. But when I say “everyone” hates her, I’m not talking about the players, I mean the cast of Genshin Impact itself.
Have you taken a look at what the current Genshin Impact roster thinks of Hu Tao? Most of them cannot stand her. If another character mentions Hu Tao, it’s usually to complain about her, while Qiqi even describes Hu Tao as having a “punch-able face.” It’s clear that the characters of Genshin Impact haven’t taken to her as quickly as the players seem to, but that doesn’t make me wary of her, it actually makes me like her more.
First, let’s dig into why she’s so unpopular. Hu Tao is described by most Genshin Impact characters as being a “prankster,” or is noted as causing mischief or trouble. This definitely fits in with her reveal trailer, which not only showed her sneaking up on and scaring two men in the forest, she also broke the fourth wall to pop up and scare us, too. I get why some of the characters aren’t here for her messing around, given all the important questing they have to be getting on with, but my favourite characters in Genshin Impact are the ones who shake things up a little.
For the most part, I like the cast of Genshin Impact, but I find a lot of them a bit stuck up. Too many of them are far too posh and come from rich, privileged backgrounds with inherited wealth, lands, or titles. They deserve to be taken down a peg or two, if you ask me. I’m glad they nearly wet themselves every time Hu Tao and her ghostly companion creep up on them out of nowhere. Good for Hu Tao, I say.
I know there are a range of backgrounds in Genshin Impact, with Mona getting by on mere pennies and Diona working as a bartender, but there are a few too many snobs for my liking and I’m glad Hu Tao is around to mix things up. Once you dig into the actual stories too, you’ll find that most of them are hilarious. For example, the reason Qiqi thinks Hu Tao is so punchable is because Hu Tao often tries to literally bury Qiqi. Remember, Qiqi is a zombie - and therefore dead - so it makes sense that our funeral director hero would try and bury Qiqi’s body for good, despite it quite clearly being undead.
Meanwhile, Chongyun admits that Hu Tao is perfectly competent at her job, but there’s something about her smile that “makes his blood boil.” There is no extra explanation given as to why he has such a visceral reaction, which only makes it funnier. Also, Xiangling and Xiao both complain about Hu Tao annoying them, but admit that they don’t mind it so much because generally Hu Tao is both helpful and funny, which I think helps pad her out a little aside from just being a prankster. Like I said, too many of the cast are too stuck up and can’t take a joke.
Probably my favourite bit of info comes from an offhand remark from fiery rockstar Xinyan, who tells us Hu Tao told her “I like people who play with fire, they're good for business”; basically saying she likes that Xinyan surrounds herself with fire, because one day she might mess up and burn herself to death, leaving Hu Tao to arrange the funeral. It’s dark, but it’s also hilarious.
Of course, I’m not starting from zero with Hu Tao. I was sold on her the instant her personality burst through her reveal trailer, and Pyro characters are just the coolest - should that be the hottest? - anyway. As a freebie player, I probably won’t ever get her in my team, but I can’t wait to see the impact she has on the game itself.
Hu Tao will ruffle a few feathers when she joins Genshin Impact, and will likely singe a few off as well. I can’t imagine she’ll stop her mischief anytime soon, so she’ll remain a bit of a pariah amongst the main cast though. She’s already one of my favourites in the game, and for the players lucky enough to pull her, I hope she lives up to her reveal trailer. Long live Hu Tao, and may her haters burn.