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Introduction
Since its release, Genshin Impact has drawn players into its expansive world with vibrant visuals, complex character design, and fluid combat mechanics. However, one of the most persistent criticisms from long-term players centers on the artifact system, particularly the randomness (RNG) involved in obtaining and upgrading artifacts. For many, this has turned what should be a rewarding progression system into a frustrating grind. In this article, we’ll explore in depth how artifact RNG affects player progression, the psychological toll it takes, community responses, and potential solutions that HoYoverse has yet to fully consider.
1. Understanding the Artifact System: Foundation and Function
Artifacts are essential for character optimization in Genshin Impact. They dictate a large portion of a character's stats, making them even more influential than weapons in some builds. Each character uses five artifact slots: Flower, Plume, Sands, Goblet, and Circlet.
The Flower and Plume always drop with fixed main stats (HP and ATK respectively), but Sands, Goblet, and Circlet can have varying main stats, making the grind especially unpredictable. On top of that, each artifact comes with up to four sub-stats, which are randomly assigned and then further randomized when leveling up.
2. The Role of RNG in Artifact Drops
The artifact system contains multiple layers of RNG. First, players must rely on domains to drop the correct artifact set. Then, they must hope to receive the right piece (e.g., Goblet or Circlet), with the correct main stat. Finally, they need good sub-stats and favorable upgrade rolls.
This means a player can spend weeks or even months farming the same domain and still not acquire a usable artifact for their build. The number of variables makes artifact farming one of the most inefficient systems in the game.
3. Progression Bottlenecks for Free-to-Play Players
Free-to-play (F2P) players face even more severe limitations due to their restricted access to Original Resin—the resource needed to claim rewards from domains. With only 160 resin per day (equivalent to 8 artifact runs), progress becomes painfully slow.
This limitation turns progression into a time-gated experience. F2P players must choose between farming artifacts, talent materials, or bosses, making every decision carry long-term consequences for their roster growth.
4. Emotional Fatigue and Burnout
A major concern among players is the emotional drain caused by repeated farming with no tangible progress. Spending hours running a domain and walking away with nothing useful can feel like a complete waste of time.
This leads to emotional fatigue and a sense of helplessness. Even when players do get a good main stat artifact, bad sub-stats or poor upgrade rolls often ruin it, reinforcing the frustration.
5. Impact on Competitive Content
Though Genshin Impact isn’t a competitive PvP game, it does offer the Spiral Abyss—its most difficult content—where players are judged by how fast they can clear waves of enemies.
Success in Spiral Abyss often depends not on player skill but on the strength of their artifacts. Those who are unlucky with artifact drops may find themselves stuck on difficult floors, regardless of strategy or execution.
6. Community Response and Memes
The artifact RNG issue has become so widely acknowledged that it's now a recurring joke in the Genshin community. Memes, Reddit posts, and Discord conversations frequently feature outrageously bad artifact rolls.
Ironically, this shared frustration has united the player base. Many laugh about it, but there’s also an underlying seriousness when they demand change from HoYoverse. Humor has become a coping mechanism for a broken system.
7. Comparison With Other Games
Other gacha or RPG titles, like Epic Seven, Destiny 2, and Diablo III, provide players with ways to mitigate RNG—such as gear re-rolling, crafting, or stat-locking mechanics.
Genshin Impact lacks any meaningful artifact customization. Once you level an artifact, you're stuck with whatever stats it gives you. This rigidity is out of step with modern gaming standards.
8. Potential Solutions the Community Wants
The community has offered many practical suggestions to fix or at least ease the artifact system's pain. Some ideas include:
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Artifact re-rolling: Allow players to re-roll one sub-stat per artifact.
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Stat-locking: Let players lock a specific stat during upgrades to ensure more control.
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Set selection: Permit players to choose which artifact set to receive in domains with multiple sets.
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Upgrade preview: Provide visibility into potential upgrade paths before investing materials.
These ideas have been repeatedly shared across forums, but HoYoverse has yet to implement any of them in a meaningful way.
9. HoYoverse’s Silence and Limited Tweaks
Despite the uproar, HoYoverse has been mostly silent about making systemic changes. They’ve occasionally introduced limited-time features like Mystic Offering, which allows players to trade three 5-star artifacts for one random one from a specific set.
While these events help slightly, they don’t solve the fundamental problem: bad stats and bad rolls. At best, they act as temporary band-aids that expire once the event ends.
10. Long-Term Impact on Player Retention
As the game continues to expand with new regions, characters, and storylines, the artifact system remains stuck in place. For veteran players, the frustration builds over time. For new players, the artifact grind may become an early barrier to full engagement.
Without real solutions, the RNG-heavy artifact system risks alienating players. Some might quit entirely, while others may reduce their playtime or engagement. For a live-service game that relies on player investment, this poses a serious long-term risk.
Conclusion
The artifact RNG system in Genshin Impact is one of the game's most significant and persistent flaws. Its multiple layers of randomness turn character progression into a luck-based lottery, particularly punishing for F2P players. The emotional toll, gameplay limitations, and lack of agency result in a system that feels more punishing than rewarding. Despite strong community feedback and countless proposals for improvement, HoYoverse has taken only minimal steps to address the issue. If Genshin Impact is to sustain its player base and evolve meaningfully, it must rework the artifact system to offer players more control, fairness, and satisfaction in their progression journey.
