Version 1.5 of Genshin Impact is coming out at the end of this month, and fans have already gotten a sneak peek at some of the upcoming content. As usual, developer miHoYo presented a livestream for fans to watch, which showed off new playable characters, events, and a housing system. Toward the end of the broadcast, a mysterious new character was also shown – and fans are now wondering if this is Yae Sakura, from miHoYo’s other RPG, Honkai Impact 3rd.

For the uninitiated, Honkai Impact 3rd is another free-to-play mobile RPG that has a large roster of playable characters and similar plot and gameplay elements. The main narrative deals with reincarnation cycles and powerful characters called Herrschers. Because of the similarities between the two games, there’s been a lot of fan speculation that Genshin Impact and Honkai Impact 3rd are connected.

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Both games deal with multiple worlds, dimensions, and a cosmic mythos built around gods. It’s not unusual for characters to travel between time or dimensions, which is why characters like Yae Sakura could be in both games at once. Previous characters from Honkai Impact 3rd, like Fu Hua, have been rumored to be in Genshin Impact before; however, this marks the first time a character from Honkai Impact 3rd seemingly appears during an official livestream for Genshin Impact. So, is Yae Sakura really coming to the game?

Genshin Impact’s Yae Sakura Character Rumors Explained

During the end of the Genshin Impact 1.5 livestream, concept art for the upcoming Inazuma region was revealed, and a new chibi-style character showed viewers what to expect. The character bears a striking resemblance to Yae Sakura from Honkai Impact 3rd, and given that characters from the game have multiple forms, it certainly seems possible Yae Sakura has traveled to Teyvat after her final events in Honkai and this is a new form for her.

In footage from the early beta for Genshin Impact, the leaked character Ayaka mentions Yae by name. However, this could have just been a placeholder name, and beta content can often be subject to change before full release. So far, Ayaka isn’t even available in Genshin Impact, so her mentioning Yae Sakura in the beta doesn’t necessarily confirm Yae will be in the game. Additionally, some fans have speculated this is an updated version of Guuji Yae, a character miHoYo has teased years ago.

So, while the new character in the 1.5 livestream looks a lot like Yae Sakura from Honkai Impact 3rd, it’s unlikely she actually is. Both games have similar character designs and art styles, so some characters are bound to look the same. Unless miHoYo officially confirms Yae Sakura for Genshin Impact, there’s just no way to know for sure.

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Austin King
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Austin King is a Game Features Editor at Screen Rant. He’s the author of several books and hosts the Dragon Quest FM and JRPGs & Me podcasts. You can find him on Twitter @DragonQuaustin.

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