Genshin Impact first anniversary event: start time, web events, rewards, and more

Genshin Impact's first anniversary event kicks off this week and you'll be able to claim lots of rewards over the next few weeks. New content will also drop alongside these rewards, but so far the community reaction has been a little frosty. Many of the rewards are focused around what fans are calling free publicity for MiHoYo as they focus on creating fan art and cosplay entries, and a gacha-like reward scheme despite asking for a lot of effort from fans. Ouch.

Regardless, here's when the anniversary event begins, and everything else you need to know.

Genshin Impact Anniversary start time

The first anniversary event begins on September 28 when Version 2.1 drops at the usual time. 

Genshin Impact web events

If you share your wishes online ahead of the event, you'll be entered into a raffle for the Engraved Wishes event. If you've never entered a wish before, you can do so via the official Genshin Impact website and 50,000 lucky players will have their names engraved on a giant Paimon block. You can also connect your social media to your Genshin Impact account if you want a chance of winning in-game goodies, as well as a PS5 or Amazon gift card irl.

From September 29 until October 7, you'll also be able to take part in the A Message in Time event by creating your own anniversary card. You'll then be selected to receive the Blessing of Welkin Mood reward, with others receiving 100,000 Mora. There's even an event where you can share your congratulatory art where you can enter for a chance to win an iPhone Pro Max via Facebook and Twitter.

This rewards system does sound a bit gacha-like, as I said before, but it's optional to take part.

Other events include:

•  Let's solve word puzzles (October 7-13) 
•  Cosplay competition (September 22-October 20) 
•  Photo submission contests (September 1-October 11) 
•  Fan art content (September 16-October 17) 
•  Video contest (September 16-October 17) 

Daily login rewards, livestream, and more 

Alongside the raffles, you'll also get various rewards just for logging in to Genshin Impact. You'll be able to claim these rewards until mid-October—unfortunately, we don't have a solid date, but you'll have until just before Version 2.2 drops on October 13. You won't need to log in every day, either—these rewards will drop in the following order, but you don't need to log in on consecutive days to get them.

Here's what you can expect to receive throughout the event, as long as you're at least Adventure Rank 5:

• Day 1: Intertwined Fate x1 
• Day 2: Mora x80,000 
• Day 3: Intertwined Fate x2 
• Day 4: Mythic Enhancement Ore x18 
• Day 5: Intertwined Fate x2 
• Day 6: Hero’s Wit x8 
• Day 7: Intertwined Fate x5 

It's unclear whether a new banner will become available during the event, so watch this space for more info. There will also be a livestream on September 28 to celebrate the event, though details on that are still thin on the ground. You'll also be able to view your own anniversary theater to see your journey so far, which you can access via the official community.

More details can be found on the official Genshin Impact community page here, such as links to all the events and rewards.