Upon initial reveal, many gamers saw numerous similarities between Genshin Impact and Breath of the Wild: near-identical visual styles, gliding and climbing mechanics, and a similar approach to world design. The same comments were repeated after Genshin Impact saw its full release, although it is in its own right a great game.]RELATED: Genshin Impact: The 6 Best Areas In The Game (And 6 Everyone Hates)Both games have areas in which they are better than the other, which may sway opinions on which is the best of the two. The type of experience players are looking for will play a major role in determining which of the two games they prefer.Updated on November 1st, 2021 by Geoffrey Martin: Genshin Impact continues to soar in popularity with more and more players logging in to try out this colorful experience. At the same time, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild provides Nintendo Switch players with one of the greatest Zelda games to date. Simply put, there continues to be more reasons to choose one game over the other.

13 Genshin Impact: Continuously Released Updates And New Content

characters from genshin impact

Considering Genshin Impact is a games-as-a-service type of experience, it continues to receive brand new content all of the time to keep you invested in its world and characters. The game has been receiving new characters via the gacha system, new questlines, and new pieces equipment at a rapid rate.

Genshin Impact is being fleshed out each and every month which means you will be able to dive back into the game down the line to receive new content to keep the experience fresh. Not every game needs to be a service-type game, however, it has to be said how important it is for longevity.

12 Breath Of The Wild: A More Focused Experience Overall

zelda breath of the wild link looking onto hyrule

Breath of the Wild is not a small gaming experience. Considering the game is open-world and non-linear, it's easy to assume you won't know what to do or where to go next. However, Breath of the Wild is always gently guiding you along its mesmerizing adventure, even if you don't know it.

Guidance is doled out through character interactions, and more importantly, through the use of fantastic lighting and waypointing. Whenver you arrive at a new location, there is seemingly always something out in the distance to lull you towards it. Yes, you can explore as you see fit, but the game keeps the expereince more focused by guiding you along in an organic manner.

11 Genshin Impact: Deeper Story

Genshin Impact Story

Genshin Impact manages to produce a story that gives players freedom but also ensures that the story remains a constant focus throughout playtime. Clear tasks are established and rewarded with large expansions of Teyvat's lore, as well as building relationships with places and the characters within them.

Due to its 'live game' nature, new story quests are added in updates too, the most recent being the 'Invitation of Windblume' released in March. Essentially, Genshin Impact gives players a lot more story to explore than Breath of the Wild and makes it a more important part of the games as a whole.

10 Breath Of The Wild: Puzzles

Daqo Chisay Shrine Breath of the Wild

Whether deep underground in the games numerous shrines or dotted around Hyrule itself, Breath of the Wild is jam-packed with great puzzles. The game's focus on environmental physics makes for some awesome 'aha' moments when things finally click.

Breath of the Wild's puzzle shrines can be solved in the wildest of ways, with players being able to find alternate ways of completing a ton of them. Zelda may have taken a huge step in a different direction in its latest incarnation, but its core of good puzzle design remains.

9 Genshin Impact: Elemental Powers

Genshin Impact: Jean using her Elemental Skill Attack on some Slimes.

Genshin Impact's answer to the Sheikah Slate and its powers comes through elemental abilities, which have use in both combat and exploration. Players start by acquiring wind powers, but will eventually have access to fire, ice, shock, and many more.

This works even better when considering the party-based system Genshin Impact uses. Players can use multiple characters with different attacks to produce cool combo moves such as the combination of wind and fire that produces a fire tornado.

8 Breath Of The Wild: Better Combat

Link fights Hinox in BotW

Breath of the Wild saw a major reinvention of the series' combat, with a wide range of new weapons, as well as the rather controversial weapon breaking. Each encounter is completely different, with players having to make use of the weapons they have, whether that be a tree branch, Thunderspear, or the Blizzard Rod.

RELATED: 10 Best Melee Weapons From Breath Of The Wild

Attacking from the air is immensely satisfying, as is lining up a fire arrow with a group of explosive barrels. The fact that, in theory, players can defeat the game's final boss with a broomstick is a testament to how wide open Breath of the Wild's combat is, and it is better for it.

7 Genshin Impact: Deeper RPG Mechanics

Genshin Impact RPG Mechanics

Unlike Breath of the Wild, which has some light RPG elements, Genshin Impact fully commits to giving players a large range of RPG mechanics to explore. All playable characters have levels and skill trees to work through, which can be improved through quest completion, as well as combat.

RELATED: Genshin Impact: 5 Best Weapons For Each Class (And 5 Budget Alternatives)

Players can also upgrade and even make weapons through scavenging items in the game's open world and taking a trip to a blacksmith. Characters can be further tweaked through stat modifiers, making Genshin Impact an incredibly customizable experience.

6 Breath Of The Wild: A Systematic World

Link Flying Minecart Breath of the Wild

If you think you can do something in Breath of the Wild, the likelihood is you can, even if that thing is flying across Death Mountain in a minecart. Setting a blade of grass on fire will engulf the whole field in flames, and can be used to attack multiple enemies at once.

Players are free to experiment knowing they'll likely be rewarded, for no matter how wild the idea, if it makes logical sense, it will probably work. It also provides a great deal of immersion that makes exploring Hyrule an unforgettable experience.

5 Genshin Impact: A More Lively World

Liyue Genshin Impact

Breath of the Wild's post-apocalyptic Hyrule is brilliantly executed, although it doesn't feel anywhere near as alive as Teyvat. Cities like Liyue and Mondstadt are unlike anything seen in BOTW, and are full of characters to meet, and tasks to find and complete.

Being a live service game means there are always events going on too. These are all things that make Genshin Impact's world feel constantly fresh.

4 Breath Of The Wild: More Player Freedom

Link Staring Into Horizon Breath of the Wild

Breath of the Wild offers players limitless freedom, for as soon as you complete the game's tutorial on the Great Plateau, the entirety of Hyrule is open to be explored. Missions appear as points on the map, but the option to turn them off and simply go off in a random direction is as rewarding as staying on an objective.

RELATED: 10 Funniest Korok Dialogues Throughout Breath Of The Wild

All players have to do to complete the game is defeat Calamity Ganon. Every other objective can be ignored. Breath of the Wild can be finished in 30 minutes, or 200 hundred hours — it is truly for the player to decide.

3 Genshin Impact: Multiple Playable Characters

Genshin Impact All Characters

Genshin Impact has a huge roster of playable characters, and the developers add more pretty regularly. Each character specializes in a specific element and choice of weapon, and as a result, there's a lot of variety to the gameplay. This is especially true because of the party system, which allows the player to build a fairly unique party of characters to journey through Teyvat.

RELATED: Genshin Impact Tier List — Best Characters For Your Party

A lot of these characters are unlocked through a gacha system though, with a select few being available for free. So as varied as Genshin Impact's characters are, it stings a bit that, without real-world currency, they can be hard to access and use.

2 Breath Of The Wild: Nintendo's Polish

Link And Zelda Breath of the Wild

There's just something a little special about Zelda games that stops any other similarly styled game from coming close to them. From the magnificent orchestral soundtrack to the outstanding level of detail seen throughout this version of Hyrule, Breath of the Wild is truly an experience unlike any other.

Nintendo games tend to have a level of quality rarely seen in other games, and the latest incarnation of Hyrule is no different. From the first hour to the hundredth, players will constantly discover new areas, characters, and ancient ruins, making this arguably the most expansive and content-rich version of Hyrule ever.

1 The Verdict: Both

genshin impact characters together, link on mountain

Okay, so it may be cheating to choose both Genshin Impact and Breath of Wild as winners, however, it purely depends on the type of game experience you want to enjoy. Genshin Impact clearly takes cues from Breath of the Wild but it is also vastly different down to being an online RPG game with consistent updates, new characters, and a completely different way to evolve your role and traits in the game.

On the other hand, Breath of the Wild provides a thoughful, meditative, and more focused adventure with less RPG systems and mechanics. You also get that Nintendo seal of approval that other games often can't match. Simply put, try both and choose the one that keeps you coming back for more. Either way, you will be richly rewarded for your time investment.

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