Please hear me out

So I keep on seeing posts complaining about version 5 calling it Genshin’s “Gooner Era” and an absolute male drought, which both is definitely true

But thinking about it more, playing Mondstadt’s new chapter and seeing the vibe that Nod Krai is apparently giving

I remember a YouTuber calling Natlan Genshin’s last chance before things get “too serious”

And the truth is, yes and no.

Yes Natlan’s story has a lot of wackiness but also insane lore drops.

Version 5 as a whole has been a mix of that

Wackiness and lore bombs

As for the male drought

This is my theorized Nod Krai roster

My theory is at least one playable character from each of the 11 factions

1. Fatui, Dottore(he’ll be involved story wise unless it’s a double whammy) Columbina 5*(more likely)
2. Frostmoon Scions, Maisie 5*(We know she’s from there)
3. Lightkeepers, TBD 4*(their existing lore gives Kachina vibes )
4. Hexenzirkel, Durin 5*(feels too early for the actual witches right now)
5. The Wild Hunt, Male 5*(just feels right, maybe Enjou lol)
6. Knights of Favonius, Varka 5*(DUH)
7. Voynich Guild, Female 4*(I’m not sure)
8. Treasure Hoarders, Male 4*(they’re the treasure hoarders what do they got going on)
9. Snowland Fae, Female 5*
10. Adventurers' Guild, Kayta 4*(she’s retired)
11. Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop, Speranza 5*(she’s the protégé’ of the Craftshop)

And Varka is gonna be our tour guide so he’ll likely be a consistent male presence, Durin shows up as an envoy to the witches. The hexinzerkl never invokes themselves directly so this feels more likely, as a sort of trial run for Durin’s new form like how Xianyun tested Shenhe if she could live among people.

The general vibe that Nod Krai is giving already feels different from Natlan, the music, the scenery, and the factions involved.

Hoyo has admitted that they’ve left a lot of things unfinished and they’re using Nod Krai to make things right before Snezhnaya.

I’d be lying if I said I hated version 5, I’ve been having an absolute blast, do I wish some things were different? YES, but you can say that about anything, the animation has been stunning, exploration as fun as it’s ever been. And seeing what an angel in Genshin looks like is awesome!!

But I know that based on everything we’ve seen on Nod Krai that the vibe won’t be the same, I’d wager to say that it’ll be closer to constant state of danger around every corner, very little time to relax or feel safe.

And I know that by the end, we’ll have done something so revolutionary that we’ll guarantee an audience with the Tsaritsa

That’s just how I’ve been feeling about everything lately. If you’re not having any fun with Genshin at all then you don’t have to play.

This was just me writing about how I feel about Version 5, how I interpreted this era of Genshin, and how I envision version 6

I think how people who love male characters(myself included) will enjoy version 6, I know a lot of us haven’t had our itches scratched in almost 2 years but here’s hoping Varka and Durin turn out awesome!!

TLDR: I don’t think Version 6 will have the same vibe that Version 5 has based on the current facts we know about Nod Krai and the characters confirmed to be involved, and it will be an era that makes everyone happy