The One Where Genshin Turned One: A 2026 Retrospective on the Anniversary Streams That Shook Teyvat

Half a decade has zipped past since the Traveler first set foot on Mondstadt’s beach, and yet the echoes of Genshin Impact’s first anniversary still rattle around the community like a stomach growling for Primogems. Back in September 2021, miHoYo (now HoYoverse, though old-timers cling to the original name like a lucky 5-star artifact) orchestrated a three-pronged livestream blitz that swung wildly between wholesome fan art panels and a leak that nearly broke the internet. Now, from the enlightened vantage point of 2026—with the game’s 6th anniversary just around the corner—it is the perfect time to reheat that spaghetti and see how those broadcasts aged. Spoiler: some aged like fine dandelion wine, others like an expired Sweet Madame.

To jog your memory without turning this into a history lecture, here’s a quick comparison of what the 2021 anniversary schedule promised versus what actually landed.

Stream Event	Date (2021)	The Hype Forecast	The Hilarious Reality (Viewed from 2026)
HoYoFair Fan Art Celebration	September 25	Exclusive codes, maybe a 5-star selector announcement (a player’s wildest dream)	A cozy art showcase that gave out a few codes and ended with everyone still scrounging for Genius Invokation TCG art. No selector, just vibes.
Tokyo Game Show 2021 Special	October 3	New character reveals, juicy Version 2.2 details	Dainsleif’s seiyuu Kenjiro Tsuda was the star, but Thoma got a proper debut and everyone forgot about Dainsleif’s playability the moment they saw his kit animations.
Leaked Anniversary Stream	September 28	A secret blowout of rewards to rival a Lantern Rite	It happened—and it was the infamous “Let’s give them one intertwined fate as a thank you” stream, sparking the Great Review Bombing of 2021.

Now let’s break down the chaos, stream by stream.

The Fan Art Fest: Where Wholesome Met Hopium

On September 25, the HoYoFair Fan Art Celebration kicked off on YouTube and a Chinese-language sister stream on Bilibili. Artists from every corner of Teyvat—and probably some from the Abyss—gathered to show off their creations. The stream had the energy of a cozy tavern corner, complete with chat spamming “FREE PRIMOS?” every time a guest paused to breathe. miHoYo hadn’t promised game-changing news, but that didn’t stop the playerbase from manifesting a free 5-star out of thin air.

What did we actually get? A handful of promo codes that expired faster than a Hilichurl’s patience during a daily commission, and a bittersweet reminder that the community’s art talent could outshine anything an anniversary gift box would offer. Fast forward to 2026, and the HoYoFair tradition has ballooned into a full-blown digital festival with VR art galleries and even AI-generated Keqing cosplay contests (controversial, but undeniably amusing). The 1st fan art celebration now looks like a humble hearth fire before the pyro-infused inferno of today’s events.

TGS 2021: Dainsleif’s Voice and Thoma’s Arrival

The Tokyo Game Show stream on October 3 was, for lore nerds, the main course. Exactly one year earlier, TGS had unveiled Dainsleif and his bone-chilling voice actor Kenjiro Tsuda—a moment that sent theorists into overdrive. The 2021 edition extended that tradition, with Tsuda-san returning to drop more cryptic lines, while the devs finally pulled back the curtain on Version 2.2. Thoma, the housekeeper who would later become a pyro shield god, walked out onto the digital stage, and half the chat immediately simped.

From 2026’s perspective, the TGS stream is a nostalgic gem that also stings. Dainsleif? Still not playable. Players have waited so long that fan theories now suggest he’s the game’s final boss who will only become a character after you 100% every single region. The version 2.2 preview, however, aged beautifully—Thoma remains a beloved pick, and the Tsurumi Island storyline is still cited as one of the spookiest chapters in Genshin’s history. The TGS stage, meanwhile, has evolved into a full-blown orchestra showcase these days, with every anniversary accompanied by a live symphony that makes even that one 1-star review bomber shed a tear.

The September 28 Leak That Went Nuclear

Ah, the spicy middle. Days before the anniversary date, leaker UBatcha tweeted that miHoYo planned a special stream on September 28 itself. No official confirmation followed, which only fanned the flames: if the leak was real, then the anniversary was about to unleash a treasure hoard of gifts. If it was bogus, Paimon was emergency food.

The stream did happen—miHoYo announced it right on the 26th, a mere 48 hours beforehand, as if they’d hastily baked a cake that everyone was already sniffing through the kitchen window. It was supposed to be a celebratory “Thank you, Travelers” broadcast. Instead, it became a masterclass in underwhelming expectations. The reward lineup—headlined by a grand total of 10 intertwined fates distributed over a week, a cosmetic glider, and a commemorative cake—felt like a Hanukkah celebration where you got a single sock. Players worldwide responded with an enthusiasm normally reserved for a wet sock, and the Google Classroom-style review bombing that followed is now a meme fossil.

Looking back in 2026, the September 28 stream is the cautionary tale HoYoverse learned from hard. Every anniversary since has been increasingly generous, to the point where the 5th anniversary tossed a free standard-banner 5-star selector at players, and the upcoming 6th is rumored to include an artifact stat customizer. That original stream aged about as gracefully as a cryo slime in a pyro domain—but boy, did it shape the future.

The Switch Version and Other Timeless Jokes

The original 2021 announcement also mentioned that a Nintendo Switch version was “in development” with no release date. Fast-forward five years, and the Switch port remains the community’s equivalent of the Holy Grail—occasionally referenced in investor calls, never appearing on the eShop horizon. In 2024, a developer slipped during an interview and said the team was “exploring next-gen possibilities,” which translated to the community adding another clown emoji to their flair. At this rate, the Switch version will launch alongside Khaenri’ah’s release, or maybe alongside Half-Life 3.

Zealous lore enthusiasts who once debated story arcs with the original article’s writer on Twitter now gather in sprawling Discord servers and virtual teahouses. The anniversary livestreams, once a chaotic jumble of leaks and fluff, have matured into polished spectacles that rival the Oscars—if the Oscars gave away Primogems. But the wild, grassroots energy of 2021’s series remains a cherished memory, a time capsule proving that even a gacha giant can trip over its own shoelaces while trying to cut a birthday cake.