It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that six whole years have passed since Genshin Impact first lit up my screen. I still remember exactly where I was when miHoYo dropped that Gamescom bombshell back in 2020—September 28, the global launch date for PS4, PC, iOS, and Android. At the time, I’d been eyeing the game for months, drawn in by its lush, open-world promises and let’s be honest, a vibe that felt like a love letter to every adventure I’d ever cherished. When they finally confirmed the console release, I practically bolted to pre-order.

On the PlayStation Store, the pre-order came with a couple of extra goodies that made my collector’s heart sing: the Sword of Descension and the Wings of Descension. Equipping those wings for the first time felt like slipping on a badge of honor. I’d glide from the highest cliffs of Mondstadt just to watch that ethereal plume trail behind me, a silent nod that said, “Yeah, I was here from day one.” The sword, too, held its own in those early skirmishes, its familiar glow a comfort when I was still learning the ropes of elemental combos.

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Stepping into Teyvat for the first time was like opening a storybook that smelled of fresh ink and wild grass. The world welcomed me with a gentle breeze that swept across Starfell Lake, and that opening vista—gosh, it still gives me goosebumps. I became the Traveler, a sibling ripped apart by a mysterious god, and suddenly I was not just playing a game; I was on a quest to reunite a family and unravel the secrets of the seven Archons who ruled over the elements. The writing felt personal, almost as if miHoYo had reached into my own dreams and given them a map.

Let me tell you, the first time I climbed to the top of the Stormterror’s Lair ruin without teleporting, I had to pause and just breathe. Games back then didn’t usually let you scale walls with such wild abandon, and Genshin’s freedom hit different. I’d spend hours simply wandering, picking sweet flowers, getting chased by a Ruin Guard that I was absolutely not ready to fight, and laughing when my glider ran out of stamina midair. Those little moments—the ones that weren’t part of any quest—are the memories I hold dearest.

The PS4 version, despite being a bit chuggy in the busiest cities, felt like a cozy home base. Zhenzhong Yi, the technical director, once said in an interview that the team would keep taking feedback to enhance performance and stability on PlayStation, and boy, did they deliver. Over the years, rendering got crisper, load times shrank, and co-op mode became the chaotic joy I always hoped it would be—sprinting through domains with friends, our elements reacting in a glorious mess of light and sound.

Fast forward to 2026, and what was once a single continent has ballooned into an entire planet’s worth of culture and conflict. We’ve walked through the golden halls of Sumeru’s Akademiya, braved the perpetual storm in Inazuma, and danced under the neon lights of Fontaine. New features that were once just a twinkle in a developer’s eye—like underwater exploration, major rendering overhauls, and seamless cross-save—have become part of daily life. And the PS4 version? It’s evolved into a smooth experience that still gets regular updates, even as most of my circle has migrated to the PS5’s silky 60 frames per second.

Looking back, that initial announcement was just a spark. I’ve since lost count of the late nights deciphering lore on random message boards, the thrill of pulling a five-star character after months of saving primogems, and the quiet mornings spent simply fishing on the shore of Cider Lake. Genshin Impact stopped being a game for me somewhere around version 2.1 and became a second home. If the Traveler has taught me anything, it’s that the journey never really ends—it just changes shape. And I, for one, can’t wait to see where the winds of Teyvat carry me next.