Infinity Nikki is, in only the most positive sense, a dream for every teenage girl. It’s a fashion-oriented open world RPG with plenty of exploration and a rich story set in a breathtaking world. While there are some rough edges to its current build, it’s hard to say how much of it lies in its demanding graphics.

The story of Infinity Nikki follows a girl named Nikki, who is pulled through a wardrobe into alternate world by a mysterious red dress. She meets a goddess wearing a fashionable eyepatch, who grants Nikki the Heart of Infinity. This gives Nikki the power of a Stylist, but before the goddess can explain anything, enemies attack them. The goddess saves Nikki and transports her to Miraland, which is a fantasy world of fashion and wishes.

Nikki and Momo (a bizarre cat pet thing) adjust very quickly to life in Miraland. However, while Miraland looks like a fantasy utopia at first glance, they soon learn about a mysterious coma-inducing illness plaguing the nation. Thanks to her Heart of Infinity, she's able to establish herself in Miraland and figure out what’s putting everyone into comas. It’s a lot to take in at once, to be honest, especially since it doesn't take long for Nikki to start acting like she's always been a part of Miraland. I wonder if you’re supposed to be familiar with the overall lore beforehand from Shining Nikki and Love Nikki.

Let me get this out of the way: any time I mention the visuals or performance, I have to add in the caveat that my gaming laptop is give or take five years old. It also has a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card inside of it. Infinity Nikki runs on Unreal Engine 5 and its default setting when it comes to FPS is “limitless,” which baffles me a little because that seems kind of insane. My computer cannot handle this game. It’s constantly stuttering and I doubt I’m seeing how beautiful the models and backgrounds really are.

Normally, I’d leave it at that. But this game feels like its target audience is around thirteen or fourteen years old. This isn’t a bad thing, but its rather demanding specs make me a little confused. Growing up, my father could be stingy when it came to entertainment. The laptop I used all throughout my childhood and teenage years literally had less storage space on it than my friend’s iPod and could barely handle The Sims 2.

If I was a kid today, playing this on a computer my dad got me, I’m pretty sure my device would just blow up. I was terrified to play Infinity Nikki during the daytime. My apartment heats up like crazy during the day and I legitimately worried that my laptop would combust. But the game seems to want a legitimate gaming PC to run properly, and I’m not sure if that makes it friendly for a general audience or not.

There’s a lot to do in Infinity Nikki. Aside from playing through the story, you can fight against enemies, dress Nikki up, and explore all the nooks and crannies of Miraland. You can also collect various currencies like Whimstars and Blings. Whimstars in particular usually make you complete a miniature challenge before you can get them. Examples of challenges include looking for a star in a given area or parkouring across platforms to get to the Whimstar. You can use Whimstars to unlock nodes in your Heart of Infinity, which can improve Nikki’s stats and unlock special outfits after completing a requisite quest. These special outfits are ones that grant Nikki access to certain actions on the overworld. For example, one outfit lets her shoot out her purification orb and another lets her catch insects (which are necessary to craft certain clothing items).

The game becomes infinitely more fun once you unlock the ability to fulfill NPC requests and challenges to dress Nikki up based on a set of given criteria. Most of the time, you just need to dress Nikki up in clothes that are a certain style. But there’s still a level of freedom that you have when it comes to expressing your own personal taste. Outside of these guidelines, you can always alter how Nikki looks in the overworld. Since you unlock the items via gacha, using in-game currency that you can collect, you can rack up a large amount of clothes and accessories in no time.

However, this is still a beta build, and it's easy to see. There are some technical difficulties, such as the audio desyncing during a cutscene. Nikki herself can be clunky to control, especially when it comes to combat. The encounters in this game tend to feature multiple enemies who surround Nikki, but she can only really attack in a single direction. She also needs to be manually directed to face that direction first, and that additional input can start to grate at times. There aren’t that many enemies that you have to deal with in Infinity Nikki, thankfully, but when you have to face them, the battles are easily some of the worst parts of the game.

Infinity Nikki is a promising RPG full of fashion and fun, though it can be very demanding on your system. The voiced tutorials and menu make it seem like it’s for children, but there’s a lot of general appeal in it through its open world exploration and character creation. Hopefully by the time the game comes out, I’ll have a much better computer so as to fully appreciate the beauty of this game.

Infinity Nikki is in development for the PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices. Windows PC version previewed.

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Ahead of the 7.6 version of Honkai Impact 3rd, HoYoVerse offered a better look at the Songque Jovial Deception: Shadowdimmer Battlesuit. While she previously appeared as an AstralOp ally, this marks the first time she’ll properly join the fight as an S-Rank unit.

The introduction to the playable version of Songque begins with her calling out to the player. She offers to tell their fortune after leaping down from a bridge. (This is because she’s working as a fortune teller in Langqiu.) From there, we get to see a gameplay clip showing her in battle and attacking with a Trick Staff. After that, the developers and voice actress Zhao Shuang talk about the Shu of Deception. They also talked about her Taoist elements in her designs, her form change, and how she was designed to be more like a mage or summoner.

Here’s the full Jovial Deception: Shadowdimmer Honkai Impact 3rd trailer. If you turn on closed captions, English subtitles are available.

This Honkai Impact 3rd Battlesuit arrives following a Part 2 boss fight against Perception, who masqueraded as Songque. That appeared in the 7.5 update. HoYoVerse recently shared a cutscene from it, showing Lantern and Songque fighting back against Perception’s attacks.

Honkai Impact 3rd is available for PCs and mobile devices, and the Songque Jovial Deception: Shadowdimmer Battlesuit will appear in the 7.6 update.

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Gelato Pique has announced its second collection of luxury Pokemon Sleep items that you can wear to bed. This time, you’ll be able to get pajamas that look like Slowpoke, Ditto, Eevee, Charmander, Pikachu, Snorlax, and Togepi. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]

Items will go on sale from July 26, 2024 in Japan. While the US Gelato Pique store did carry the first line of items, it does not have the second collection on its website. Here are the prices for everything you can get:

• Cooling t-shirt and shorts: 10890 JPY
• Hairband: 3410 JPY
• Kids’ cooling t-shirt and shorts: 8800 JPY
• Kids’ set (parka and shorts): 14960 JPY
• Mens’ cooling t-shirt and shorts: 11880 JPY
• Mens’ set (parka and shorts): 19140 JPY
• Pajama set (shorts): 17820 JPY
• Pikachu cushion: 11880 JPY
• Pouch: 4950 JPY
• Rompers: 9680 JPY
• Sheets: 17820 JPY
• Slippers: 5390 JPY
• Towel: 1760 JPY

Gelato Pique is a rather expensive brand of sleepwear, with most of the items using its baby moco material. Baby moco jacquard is a soft and delicate material that Gelato Pique uses in a lot of its products.

Pokemon Sleep is a sleep-tracking app that lets you raise Pokemon by sleeping. It does require you to keep your phone on during the night, as it needs to record you while you’re sleeping. When you wake up, you can read a report on things like how long it took you to fall asleep and your sleep type.

Pokemon Sleep is readily available on mobile devices. The second Gelato Pique and Pokemon Sleep collaboration collection will appear in stores in Japan on July 26, 2024.

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HoYoVerse has revealed the key visual and voice actresses for Jane Doe, an upcoming Agent in Zenless Zone Zero. There’s no information on Jane’s kit or even her faction.

According to her Agent Record, Jane is a cat Thiren, just like Nekomata. However, she lacks a lot of the physical features that Nekomata has, including the large cat ears or the cat tail. In fact, she looks a lot closer to a rodent than a cat. Some of her lines seem to suggest that she’s a bit of an untrustworthy character. In her voice actor reveal, she states that she has a lot of experience working odd jobs and she enjoys talking to the Proxy, noting that there’s something special about them.

In English, Kelsey Jaffer voices Jane Doe in Zenless Zone Zero. Jaffer’s previous roles include Ayako in The First Slam Dunk, Yaoyao in Genshin Impact, and Ayla in Punishing: Gray Raven. In Japanese, Yu Shimamura voices Jane Doe. Some of Shimamura’s past roles include Annie in Attack on Titan, Yosano in Bungo Stray Dogs, and Penthesilea/Berserker of El Dorado in Fate/Grand Order.

Jane Doe will appear as a playable character in Version 1.1 of Zenless Zone Zero. Other upcoming characters include Qingyi and Seth. Zenless Zone Zero is readily available on the PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices.

The post Jane Doe Is Apparently a Cat Thiren in Zenless Zone Zero appeared first on Siliconera.

HoYoVerse shared a new trailer with Natlan Characters for Genshin Impact. The trailer, which is almost four minutes long, not only teases new characters, but also showcases the roles they will play in the Archon Quest to come.

You can watch the Ignition teaser trailer for Genshin Impact, “A Name Forged in Flames,” here:

You can also watch it in Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, and Korean.

It shows the new Genshin Impact Natlan characters tossing a ball around, showing not only who we’ll see but also some of the locales we’ll explore. At the end, we see what appears to be the Pyro Archon, who’s wearing something that looks like a biker outfit. She also asks Capitano of the Harbingers if he’s ready to compete in the upcoming tournament, hinting at the Fatui’s role in the story.

Here is the English cast for Genshin Impact Natlan:

• Chasca: Lauren Amante (Melly Plinius/Entomologist in Identity V)
• Citlali: Skyler Davenport (March 7th in Honkai: Star Rail)
• Iansan: Katrina Salisbury (Nico Niyama in Kiznaiver)
• Il Capitano: Chris Tergliafera (Gundham Tanaka in Danganronpa series)
• Kachina: Kristen McGuire (Akane in Oshi no Ko)
• Kinich: John Patneaude (Quatre Salision in The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak)
• K’uhul Ajaw: Abby Espiritu (Romin Kassidy in Yu-Gi-Oh Sevens)
• Mavuika: Katiana Sarkissian (Pernilla in Epic Seven)
• Mualani: Cassandra Lee Morris (Morgana in Persona 5)
• Ororon: Nathan Nokes (Bardon in Dislyte)
• Xilonen: Beth Curry (Appears to be her first major voice-over role)

Here’s the Japanese cast:

• Chasca: Yuko Kaida (Saori in Lost Judgment)
• Citlali: Asami Tano (Saki in Zombie Land saga)
• Iansan: Ayaka Ohashi (Uzuki in The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls)
• Il Capitano: Ken Narita (Sesshoumaru in Inuyasha)
• Kachina: Yurika Kubo (Loki in Danmachi)
• Kinich Noriaki Sugiyama (Sasuke in Naruto)
• K’uhul Ajaw: Junko Takeuchi (Naruto in Naruto)
• Mavuika: Mikako Komatsu (Maki in Jujutsu Kaisen)
• Mualani: Nao Toyama (Mikhail in Drakengard 3)
• Ororon: Takashi Kondo (Ludger in Tales of Xillia 2)
• Xilonen: Fairouz Ai (Jolyne in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure)

Genshin Impact is readily available on the PS4, PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices. Ahead of Natlan, we’ll get Version 4.8, which will introduce Emilie as a playable character and a new limited area for the summer.

The post Genshin Impact Ignition Trailer Teases Natlan Characters appeared first on Siliconera.

Atlus and Sega announced that the Puella Magi Madoka Magica SMT Liberation Dx2 event is now live until July 24, 2024, bringing Madoka Kaname, Homura Akemi, and the Witch Walpurgisnacht to the game. This is tied to the new, fourth Madoka Magica movie Walpurgisnacht: Rising, which is due to appear in 2024.

First, there are events tied to Madoka Magica showing up in the game. One is a login campaign. That started alongside the event on July 11, 2024. If people log in for ten days total, they get 50 Madoka Magica Summon Files for the gacha and five Time-limited Monster Dews to recover stamina. In addition, "The power of hope, and a cursed destiny..." two-part event is now running, with Part 1 going until July 17, 2024. Part 2 will last July 17-24, 2024. Going through quests and missions during it can net you Auto-Turning Cogs for the event exchange. There are also special Event Genome Cubes with special Skills to earn and other rewards for completing quests like Madoka Magica Summon Files or the An Existence that Negates All title. 

As for the three Madoka Magica SMT Liberation Dx2 event characters, all of them are Grade 90 five-stars. Some of Madoka’s highlighted abilities are the passive unique skill My Prayer, which is notable due to one of its effects giving all allies a 2,000HP Bulwark with Fortify while boosting the party’s attack and defense while the Bullwark is active. Her active unique skill It’ll Be All Right. Homura’s passive unique skill Time Traveler increases her Phys damage and adds Phys Pierce, increases her hit and critical hit rate, increases battle speed, adds Null Charm, and keeps her from dying from killing blows twice. Her active unique skill is called I’ll Finish Up Alone. Finally, Walpurgisnacht has the Play’s Editor passive unique skill that, among other things, gives her a Bulwark that is 100% of her HP and decreases damage by 100% when it is active. Her active unique skill is called Great Calamity.

Here’s the trailer for the event, which shows Madoka, Homura, and Walpurgisnacht SMT Liberation Dx2 gameplay.

Anime crossovers aren’t uncommon for SMT Liberation Dx2. Berserkand Ghost in the Shellboth appeared in the game. 

SMT Liberation Dx2 is available on mobile devices, and the Puella Magi Madoka Magica event and banners for the game are live until July 24, 2024.

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Square Enix often releases themed costumes for characters in FFVII Ever Crisis, and the latest Tifa gear is a Passion Mermaid outfit. It is designed to match her new Shell Knuckles weapon, which is a part of the new featured draw banner alongside the Barret Sharkslayer gun arm.

The Passion Mermaid Tifa gear, Tifa Shell Knuckles weapon, and Barret Sharkslayer gun arm all join FFVII Ever Crisis around the 2024 Summer’s Here: Fireworks event. The Passion Mermaid gear has the Sun’s Favor and Flameblade Arcanum R. Abilities, with the former affecting her HP and Phys. Defense and the latter boosting her Fire Ability damage. This ties in with the Shell Knuckles’ C. Ability, which is Spinning Fervor. That deals Fire Mag. damage to one enemy, which will be stronger if her HP is above 70%. That also boosts her Fire Ability damage and MATK. 

Meanwhile, Barret’s Sharkslayer has the Dorsal Fin Shot that hits one enemy for non-elemental Phys. damage, can reduce Fire and Water resistance, and destroys Sigils. That also boosts his HP and makes buffs and debuffs last longer.

Here’s the official reveal with art of both weapons. It noted that this banner will end on August 1, 2024 as well.

Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis is available for the PC and mobile devices.

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The Evangelion Summoners War: Chronicles crossover event is now live, giving people a chance to summon versions of Shinji, Rei, Asuka, and Mari in their school uniforms and plugsuits. There will also be a “A.D. FIELD!” quest, Shinji-Obot Port and Rei-Mirror Lake dungeons, and a Ready for Battle! Stop the Angel Invasion! event.

Some of the events and activities don’t necessarily start alongside the collaboration’s beginning. The Ready for Battle! Stop the Angel Invasion! one that involves defeating Angels with Evas using Energy Coins is available immediately, with Energy Coins able to be collected via missions. Asuka's Energy Gift is already ongoing, doling out 100 Energy and 10 Quick Battle Permits per day until someone collects the bonus for seven days. However, the announcement revealed that the two locked dungeons that are part of the Shinji-Obot Port and Rei-Mirror Lake ones and tied to Asuka and Mari won’t open until July 18, 2024. The five-star Water Shinji unit will be a collab dungeon reward.

As for the Evangelion Summoners War: Chronicles summon banner crossover units, there are some that are available now, and others that appear on July 18, 2024. All of them are five-star “monsters.” You can pull to try and get the Water Shinji, Wind Rei, Dark Shinji, and Light Rei immediately. The Water/Dark Shinji both feature Lance of Longinus Skills, to connect to the series, and a Synchronization Skill. Meanwhile, the Wind Rei has Heat Resistant Light Wave Shield and Unit 0 Pilot skills, while Light Rei has abilities like A.T. Field Deployment and Even If I Die, I Can Be Replaced. The Fire Asuka, Fire Mari, Dark Asuka, and Light Mari art is available ahead of their banners’ July 18, 2024 debut, but their skills are not.

Here are how all the Evangelion characters will look in-game.

A developer video also showed some of the units in-battle and their skills.

Another teaser acted as a reveal for the event:

Summoners War: Chronicles is available on PCs and mobile devices. Evangelion is streaming on Netflix, and the Rebuild of Evangelion movies are on Amazon. The Summoners War: Chronicles Evangelion crossover event runs July 11, 2024, and it ends on August 10, 2024.

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Ahead of Changli’s debut as a playable character in Wuthering Waves, the game will run the Bountiful Crescendo event. During this event, you’ll be able to get double the rewards from Simulation and Forgery Challenges.

The Bountiful Crescendo event will run in Wuthering Waves from July 11 to July 18, 2024. In order to participate in it, you need to be Union Level 14 at the minimum. You can only take advantage of the double rewards three times per day, with the refresh happening at 4:00 AM server time. As a reminder, this is only for Simulation Challenges and Forgery Challenges. But you’ll be able to use the leftover Waveplates to farm extra content.

As mentioned earlier, this event is likely to help players prepare for new character Changli. She’ll appear in the gacha from July 21, 2024. Even if you don’t plan on pulling for her, you can take advantage of the double rewards to build characters you already have but might not have had time or resources for.

Wuthering Waves is readily available on the Windows PC and mobile devices. The Bountiful Crescendo event in Wuthering Waves will run from July 11 to July 18, 2024. Changli’s banner will appear in the game from July 21, 2024.

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For a game about encouraging fighting and battle encounters, HoYoVerse spends a lot of time in Zenless Zone Zero keeping players away from or limiting their time with the combat that is the best part. The pacing in the tutorial and campaign feels flawed. Not to mention the movement methods to “explore” the Hollow detract from the experience, given the execution and only occasional opportunities to witness the space firsthand.

I think it hits hardest because this is going on from the very start. While other HoYoVerse games like Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail wall off elements like multiplayer opportunities or certain events until you reach certain ranks or complete specific tutorial missions, neither feature the flawed and extended pacing of Zenless Zone Zero. The time it takes to finally meet our protagonists Wise and Belle, isn’t too bad. However, getting to a point when you can freely explore Sixth Street and access every facility involves actual hours of playtime. It’s quite a shock. 

This isn’t helped by the actual mission-based and Hollow-exploration experience. Whereas other HoYoVerse games like Honkai: Star Rail and Genshin Impact involve exploration, unique environments, and opportunities to engage with the world, Zenless Zone Zero… doesn’t. Quests involve moving along a “map” of monitors, occasionally solving block-pushing puzzles, only to go into battle in the same sorts of bite-sized spaces repeatedly. While these enemy encounters eventually start to be a bit more varied after about five hours of play, early on it does feel like you’re spending most of your time moving along the screen grids or seeing comic panel cutscenes to take part in between two and five 2-3 minute battles. 

The way in which Zenless Zone Zero handles its characters also can result in awkward pacing, given each person controls differently. So unlike games like Genshin Impact or Honkai: Star Rail, where we have versatile protagonists that can adopt different roles in teams due to shifting their element or path, we don’t have a main character who can be a Jack of all trades to help us ease into it. This is a game where who you manage to own matters more than ones where having teams of certain paths or people with certain weapon types means you can generally be fine. If you don’t like how the first few free characters you get in Zenless Zone Zero work, you’re in trouble. 

Worse, the pacing means you’re forced into using initial free characters that aren’t exactly great or easy to use. The free pre-registration bonus character Corin is a slow DPS character very dependent on fellow Victoria Housekeeping allies and additional Mindscape unlocks to be viable. Of the free Cunning Hares characters, Nicole is the only potentially viable one due to her crowd-control abilities. It is very possible you won’t even find a character you like using until you unlock the ability to use the gacha and pull someone else, which can take a few hours based on your luck. I personally didn’t start to really enjoy combat until I got a random-luck Rina from Ellen’s focus banner within my first 10 pulls and got Nekomata from Star-Studded Cast guaranteed launch five-star. 

Zenless Zone Zero didn’t start clicking for me until I helped the Cunning Hares and Nekomata with their case. By that point, I’d already been playing for at least an hour each day for five days since the July 4, 2024 launch. If I hadn’t been doing so for work, I’m not sure I would have stuck with it. All the while, I kept thinking that there are elements of a good game here! The character design is fantastic. I like the bits of lore that come through. Once I started using a team made up of Nekomata, Rina, and Anton, I even really got into the combat. However, the pacing for the campaign got me every time, and I worry that it could affect the game’s success unless HoYoVerse makes some adjustments.

Zenless Zone Zero is available for the PS5, PC, and mobile devices. 

The post Zenless Zone Zero Has a Bad Pacing Problem appeared first on Siliconera.

In Honkai Impact 3rd, the “A Crime Foretold” chapter involved a boss fight between Perception and Lantern and Songque. Now, HoYoVerse shared the full cutscene video from the 7.5 match online, as well as put out a call for test server guide submissions.

First, here’s the trailer for the Lantern and Songque fight against Perception. While it seems like Lantern is fighting Songque herself, it is actually an opponent that looks like Songque. During the segment, we get to see her use a Trick Staff to attack.

As for Honkai Impact 3rd, 7.6 is on the way. At the end of June 2024, HoYoVerse started the recruiting process for testers for it. Given 7.5 appeared in June 2024, following the May 2024 testing period for it, we’ll likely see the next update in the near future as well. Those taking part are the ones being tapped for the guide submissions. Until July 25, 2024, HoYoVerse is taking requests for guides to the Songque Jovial Deception: Shadowdimmer S-rank battlesuit, Elysian Realm, Memorial Arena, Superstring Dimension, and Universal Mirage. After results are announced on August 2, 2024, people may be given Crystals as a reward for them based on quality.

The new battlesuit will mark the second time Songque appeared as a party member in Honkai Impact 3rd. The first was as an AstralOp character in Part 2.

Honkai Impact 3rd is available on PCs and mobile devices, and the 7.6 update is on the way.

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NetEase has released a new promotional image for the upcoming Persona 5 Royal crossover event in Identity V. The first Essence will re-run on August 2, 2024.

The image shows Identity V versions of Joker, Mona, Skull, Panther, and Fox from Persona 5 Royal. These were the characters who appeared in the first Essence, though Mona is a pet that travels with you rather than a Survivor skin. Like the previous Death Note and The Promised Neverland collaboration events, these are skins that you can put on existing Survivors rather than a separate character.

The skins that’ll be in the first Essence are:

• Fox/Yusuke Kitagawa: Embalmer
• Joker/Ren Amamiya: Acrobat
• Panther/Ann Takamaki: Female Dancer
• Skull/Ryuji Sakamoto: Forward

There are two versions of each skin. One is the character in their school uniform and the other is them in their Phantom Thief outfit. In order to Awaken the outfit into the Phantom Thief skin, you’ll need Souls of Resistance, which you could get via gacha. The second half of the crossover, which ran in 2019 soon after the first part, will feature Oracle (Mechanic), Queen (Coordinator), Noir (Gardener), and Crow (First Officer). This will be a Royal crossover, so it’s unknown if Crow’s Black Mask outfit or Yoshizawa will appear in the gacha at a later date.

Identity V is readily available on mobile devices and Windows PC. The Persona 5 Royal crossover event will re-run in Identity V from August 2, 2024.

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Ahead of her playable debut in Honkai: Star Rail, HoYoVerse has released a new animated trailer for Jade, focusing primarily on her identity as Lady Bonajade. Those who have played the Version 2.3 story should be familiar with the types of contracts Jade makes in this role.

You can watch the “Bonajade Exchange” trailer for Jade here:

It’s also available in Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

In it, we see Jade forming a contract with someone, who seemed to want riches from her. Though her deals seem fair, they tend to lead the contractor to ruin. We can see this in the 2.3 story as well, where the people who make deals with Jade (Lady Bonajade) get what they want but the fallout from the aftermath might seem steep from an outsider’s perspective.

Jade will be a 5-star Quantum Erudition character in Honkai: Star Rail and, like with other characters, HoYoVerse has released multiple trailers introducing her play style and role. In the story, she is an IPC Stoneheart who appeared on Penacony to help Topaz and Aventurine in taking it over. As for her play style, she works as a sub-DPS and support. Not only can she deal follow-up attacks, much like her fellow Stonehearts Topaz and Aventurine, but she is also able to buff an ally or herself with her Skill.

Honkai: Star Rail is readily available on the PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices.

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The Argenti re-run banner will appear soon in Honkai: Star Rail Version 2.3, running along new Erudition character Jade. But should you consider pulling for him, or would it be better for you to save your precious Stellar Jades for either Jade or a future character? Honestly, I think Argenti can be skipped if you're not too keen on Pure Fiction or can clear it without issue. After reading his pros and cons, you can make your own decision as to whether or not to pull for him.

How does Argenti work in Honkai: Star Rail?

Argenti is, for better or for worse, an incredibly easy character to use. His kit is very simple, focusing on AoE attacks and his Ultimate. With only 90 Energy (cheaper than other attackers) he can unleash a weaker version of his Ultimate to attack all targets. The powered up version of his Ultimate requires 180 Energy, but it deals more damage, as well as hits extra times. That’s basically it.

Why should you pull for Argenti?

Due to his ability to hit all targets at once with his Skill and his Ultimate, Argenti is an amazing character for modes and events like Pure Fiction. This on its own is fantastic. While Pure Fiction, like Memory of Chaos, does change its bonuses depending on the current meta and banner character (such as the focus on Break Effect thanks to Boothill and Firefly), certain characters like Himeko and Herta are always welcome thanks to their ability to consistently attack and defeat multiple enemies at once. Having and building Argenti means you don’t have to worry as much about shifting up your team or needing the most recent character.

Though not flashy, Argenti’s kit also makes it easy to put him in teams. He can work as a both a main or a sub attacker. Unlike some attackers like Firefly (who focuses entirely on Break DMG) and Kafka (who focuses entirely on DoT), you can use any support character with Argenti and he can reap almost all of their benefits.

Why shouldn’t you pull for Argenti?

For starters, if you really want to pull in 2.3, you need to consider whether Jade is a better fit for your account than Argenti. Jade is, like Argenti, an Erudition character who’s capable of attacking all enemies at once. She can double as a support unit with her follow-up attacks and her ability to buff an ally or herself. If you’re not too worried about modes like Pure Fiction, then Jade or some of the upcoming characters (Yunli and Jiaoqiu) might be a better investment. Argenti's sole use in a team is attacking things. He's very good at this, mind you. But there are so many other characters who are good at just attacking things.

Argenti’s also a little bit dated in that his best Relics are Champion of Streetwise Boxing. This Set is available in the same Cavern of Corrosion as the Thief of Shooting Meteor Set. Fortunately for Argenti, Break Effect is all the rage right now so farming for Thief isn't so bad. But if you're a longtime player, then you should already have tons of Thief pieces from normal farming. You can synthesize Relics for Argenti instead of going into the Cavern. But if you need to farm anew for Argenti, you might want to consider building some other characters for Pure Fiction. It's really not worth the Trailblaze Energy unless you're pulling for Argenti out of love.

Argenti is a fantastic unit for clearing content like Pure Fiction. Very few characters can match him when it comes to his performance as an AoE attacker. However, his needing to take Champion of Streetwise Boxing can make him hard to build (read: annoying to farm for) and depending on your existing roster, you might not need him. I recommend pulling for him only if you’re having trouble with Pure Fiction and you actually care about that mode or similar events.

Honkai: Star Rail is readily available on the PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices. You can only pull for Argenti when the “Thorns of Scented Crown” banner is live.

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The new web event for Genshin Impact, Fragrant Fantasy, is now live on the HoYoVerse website. You can access it from here.

As you may imagine, the web event focuses on Emilie, who will be a new playable character in the game. The web event lets you create your own perfumes by combining different flowers and scents. You can collect more cards when you complete daily quests. Once you finish making your perfume, you can gift it to either Navia, Sigewinne, or Furina. You can also color in your own perfume box, though it doesn’t seem to affect anything. Prizes you can get include Primogems, Mora, and experience books.

Emilie is an upcoming 5-star Dendro Polearm character who hails from Fontaine. In lore, she is a self-employed perfumer whose work is popular among the more fashionable ladies in Fontaine. So far, there is no official information on her kit, so it’s unknown what kind of niche she’ll fill in your party.

Aside from Emilie appearing as a new playable character, Version 4.8 will also introduce new summer skins for Nilou and Kirara. You’ll need to pay real money for Nilou’s skin whereas Kirara’s will be for free through the event. As well, 4.8 will introduce the new region Simulanka, which will, like the Golden Apple Archipelago, only be available for a limited time.

Genshin Impact is readily available on the PS4, PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices. Version 4.8 of Genshin Impact, which is when Emilie will make her playable debut, will come out on July 17, 2024.

The post Genshin Impact Fragrant Fantasy Web Event is Now Live appeared first on Siliconera.