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Genshin Impact‘s Natlan Archon Quests started off very strong with its interesting premise and numerous mysteries. When I first entered this region, I expected a lot of things from the main story. After experiencing Fontaine’s story arc, I thought that I would get something similar from Natlan. Unfortunately, that is not the case. While this story arc has its great moments, it doesn’t quite manage to fully deliver on its promises, making its climax fall flat in some aspects.
Natlan Archon Quest Leaves Me Feeling Unsatisfied
If there is one word that best describes Natlan Archon Quests, it’s Shonen-like. Now, I have nothing against Shonen, considering that I grew up reading and watching this genre of anime, and I’m still watching it sometimes. I don’t mind the whole good vs. bad thing, but I still require a great amount of buildup that makes the climax feel satisfactory.
In the climax of Natlan’s story arc, the Traveler and Mavuika face off against Gosoythoth in the Abyss. Genshin Impact wants to make you feel like a hero by making all these people support you. The six heroes even lend their help by using the “power of friendship” to finally defeat the big bad. My problem is not that Genshin Impact is using these tropes, but I have issues with the lackluster buildup and inconsistent pacing.
Shonen tropes tend to be very cheesy. If you want to make them work, you need to make readers and players believe that the characters care about each other. Although you are given time to hang out with the six heroes in Natlan Archon Quests, I don’t think they’ve spent enough time making them trust the Traveler that much. Yet somehow, you will see and hear them saying all these cheesy and too personal words toward the main character.
It’s even strange to see the Natlan citizens worship the protagonist as if they’re their Archon. Sure, we have offered some help, but seeing them put this much trust into an outlander still feels off.
Another thing that makes Natlan Archon Quests feel off is the inconsistent pacing. Sometimes, it’s very hectic and rushed to the point you can’t even think; other times, it’s so slow that you can’t help but skip through the dialogues. The fact that this story is cut apart due to Genshin Impact‘s live service model makes the arc feel even more incohesive. Perhaps new players who consume the whole Natlan Archon Quests in one go can enjoy it better than me.
Lack of Character Development
Maybe I was spoiled by Fontaine’s amazing story arc, and I felt very disappointed in Mavuika’s lack of character development. Furina is arguably the most fleshed-out Archon in Genshin Impact. You can already understand her character and see her inner struggle from the main quest.
Mavuika, on the other hand, suffers the common HoYoverse character fate where their background is shoved into a YouTube animation video. I’m not saying they are not good animations, but I wish I could see those character arcs in the actual Natlan Archon Quests. After the end of version 5.3 quests, Mavuika remains the same. She’s just your perfect Archon who never gives up.
Capitano is another character who gets removed from the story too soon. I get that HoYoverse is trying to set up the whole gods vs. humans subplot, with Capitano as the main example. However, I feel that Genshin Impact could’ve featured the man a bit more instead of dropping him out of the blue right at the end.
Another thing I’m not satisfied with is the lack of answers to a question that HoYoverse set up in the Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview trailer. In the Natlan section, the narrator discusses how the Pyro Archon will share a secret with the Traveler. Now, with the Natlan story arc ending, I still don’t know what secret Mavuika is supposed to tell us. She hasn’t said anything new about the lore. She did shoot the fake sky and show those strange-looking moons, but that’s not her telling us a secret.
I’m not saying that Natlan Archon Quests is the worst. Frankly, it’s about the same quality as most other story arcs. I’m disappointed after experiencing Sumeru and Fontaine’s interesting and engaging plot. It feels like Genshin Impact has taken a step back and returned to the game’s early days. While I can excuse Mondstadt and Liyue for being simple since they need to set up the story, I expected Natlan to be better since it’s standing above the other story arcs that help build up the world and main plot.
