The anticipation is finally over as Kuro Games unveils a new trailer for their highly anticipated free-to-play open world action RPG, “Wuthering Waves,” which is already gaining significant traction.
The game’s release date has been confirmed for May 22nd across PC, iOS, and Android platforms with pre-registration numbers soaring beyond 16.3 million, surpassing numerous milestones and unlocking enticing rewards such as 80,000 Shell Credits, 10 Advance Resonance Potions, and 200 Astrite.
As excitement mounts, achieving the next milestone of 20 million pre-registrations will grant access to the Sigil: En Route, with 20 Lustrous Tides awaiting at the 30 million mark.
With its second closed beta test conducted back in February, Wuthering Waves bears striking resemblances to miHoYo’s Genshin Impact. Players have voiced a unanimous sentiment, noting parallels in story design and gameplay mechanics, including elements akin to Genshin Impact’s Spiral Abyss.
Moreover, the likeness between Genshin Impact and Wuthering Waves extends beyond mere aesthetics. Both games adopt identical energy/resin mechanics, integral for engaging in weekly challenges, confronting world bosses, and exploring dungeon domains to acquire crucial materials and coveted gear.
In Wuthering Waves, these sought-after items, referred to as echoes, offer stat-boosting characteristics akin to artifacts in Genshin Impact. The gacha mechanic is practically identical, Wuthering Waves will feature several banners, some fixed whereas others are rotating, with a focus towards a singular five star character with increased drop rates for selective four star characters.
There’s a pity system implemented that you’ll get a five star weapon/character after 80 pulls, however if rolling on a featured banner you’ll only have a 50% chance of obtaining that character in particular, identical to Genshin Impact.
In general, my stance on Wuthering Waves being perceived as a clone of Genshin Impact is neutral. Undoubtedly, Genshin Impact’s success stems from its robust gameplay and immersive narrative, complete with voice acting, initially available for free.
However, its downfall lies in the repetitive, stat-gated end-game content, compelling players to grind for optimal gear combinations and duplicate characters for “constellation” upgrades.
While the expansive game itself can be enjoyed without spending money, its primary appeal often lies in acquiring beloved characters you find attractive, endearing or simply because they are apart of a “meta” team lineup.
On another note, there’s been a noticeable shift in the Genshin Impact community since its initial release, with majority of its remaining cancerous community being obnoxious little shits.
Certain individuals, mainly “fujoshis” are unable to accept non-sexual interactions between same-sex characters, imposing their own delusions upon the community, enforcing their own head cannons that every single character in the game is either a lesbian or a homosexual.
miHoYo seems to have recognized this trend, dedicating efforts to introduce more male characters in recent updates, catering to this audience while simultaneously censoring its female characters in Zenless Zone Zero.
Why is this a concern for Wuthering Waves? Well, much like Genshin Impact, the game offers a diverse range of male characters for players to acquire and use. Given the significant similarities between the two games, as suggested by Closed Beta Testers, Wuthering Waves appears to offer a similar experience, albeit with enhanced visuals and slightly more forgiving energy / gacha mechanics.
The worry arises from the potential influx of players who WILL bring their cancerous behavior into the Wuthering Waves community. With many such individuals imposing their own interpretations onto the characters, labeling them as being gay while condemning anyone who disagrees.
With this reason alone, my enthusiasm for Wuthering Waves has waned, especially considering the availability of alternatives like Project Mugen and Azur Promilia which I am more excited for.
Regarding Azur Promilia, you don’t have to solely rely on my word for how cancerous Genshin Impact’s community is. Following the absence of male characters in Azur Promilia’s trailer, Chinese fujoshis orchestrated review bombings against Manjuu, prompting an official statement from them declaring the game a FEMALE ONLY title.
A: Because we know we’re good at designing [waifus] so our vision and direction for this project are clear. From the beginning, we have already decided the gacha cast to be female-only. Hence it’s all girls in the PV (apart from NPC).
This proactive measure effectively filtered out these progressive elements right from the start.
If you’re a fan of Genshin Impact and enjoy its status quo then giving Wuthering Waves a chance makes a lot of sense, as it offers more of the familiar experience with enhanced visuals. You can secure bonus rewards by pre-registering on the official website before the game’s launch on May 22nd.
However, I’d advise caution when it comes to the progressive minefield that its community and fandom will likely become.
