There’s no doubt that Genshin Impact is famous for its many well-developed characters. While many sites have explored the characters purely based on their in-game statistics, few have ranked them based on other criteria, such as personality and background.
With that in mind, here’s our take on our top 6 male characters in Genshin Impact! We will be looking not only into their designs and in-game abilities, but also the depth of the character and their presented or potential backstory.
Disclaimer: Spoiler warning for story events in the official comic, quests and character profile.
6. Aether/Sora/Traveler
While many players often choose to remove the Traveler from their main team, Aether is still one of the best melee and puzzle-solving characters you can find, especially if you’re a F2P player. His elemental skills, when mixed with the right elements, can deal massive elemental damage to nearby enemies. His constellation can also be maxed out without needing to gacha for it.
Story-wise, he is filled with mysteries that are yet to be uncovered. He and his twin sister are not from the world of Teyvat. They travelled to this continent in the hopes of enjoying their time here, to only be thrown into battle with an Unknown God, causing them to be stuck in this realm.
As he is, canonically speaking, the main character, he definitely will have more moments to shine in the future. We’re especially looking forward to when he reunites with his sister Lumine, who is the ruler behind the Abyss Order.
5. Razor
Despite being a 4-star character, Razor is often said to be on equal standing with his 5-star brethren in terms of gameplay. He is a claymore wielder that deals high DPS, and has a fast energy recharge rate if paired with the correct build. His ultimate attack does not heavily rely on elemental damage alone, making him more versatile to use on various monsters.
While he’s a strong asset to your party, his story still leaves much to be desired. His personality is more or less the classic trope of a wild child who was raised by animals instead of humans. While his short statements can be endearing, it unfortunately doesn’t allow us to learn more about him.
4. Zhongli
From what we can observe from the 1.1 update trailer, Zhongli is a Geo polearm user whose ultimate move is dropping a giant meteor onto to his enemies. It’s possible that he can deal massive AoE damage on top of his quick attack speed, making him a must-have for most players.
As for his story, while we were introduced to Zhongli as a mora-less walking encyclopedia of Liyue history and culture, there is more to him than meets the eye. He not only orchestrated the entire plot that happened in Liyue, but also managed to keep it a secret from everyone around him, in the hopes of retiring from being the Geo Archon with full confidence that Liyue will continue to prosper without him.
3. Xiao
Xiao is probably one of the fandom’s most anticipated banner releases, having been a fan favourite since the game’s early beta release days. Known as the “Conqueror of Demons”, he possesses a great prowess with the polearm as well as Anemo vision. However, his ultimate appears to be a double-edged sword, as it will slowly chip away at his HP for as long as it is active.
Xiao comes with a unique backstory that takes us back to when the Archon War was still at its peak. He was once under the control of an evil God that pushed him to perform cruel and bloody acts, until he was liberated by the Geo Archon and given the name Xiao. While it is unknown how much his character has changed post-beta, his backstory will definitely give us a greater insight into Tevyat’s lore.
2. Diluc Ragnvindr
Diluc needs no introduction for his strength in-game. He is a strong damage dealer with great elemental skills up his sleeves. His ultimate move is a giant bird that can one-shot a large range of enemies while dealing massive pyro damage, making him one of the best pyro users in the game.
His character backstory has also been well established in many official sources, with both the webtoon and in-game events illustrating to us his inner strength in overcoming both his past shortcomings and the anger he harboured for so long. It’s definitely a trait that many of us can easily take to heart and admire.
1. Tartaglia/Childe
A man of many names, Childe is the game’s first playable antagonist, whose playstyle is also vastly different from the other characters. Doubling as both a ranged and melee attacker, his versatility in combat helps him deal higher amounts of damage, as well as being suited to many different team combos.
While he may seem like a manipulative and shady character, he is also fiercely loyal to his family, especially his siblings. This can be seen from how he pretends to be a toymaker to protect his brother’s childhood innocence. There’s so much more to this character than meets the eye, and we’re definitely interested in learning more about the secrets of Snezhnaya.
Honorary Mention
Kaeya Alberich
Despite being rather lacking in his in-game abilities, Kaeya, the last hope of Khaenri’ah, takes the crown for potential character development.
Abandoned by his father as a child, Kaeya was adopted and raised by Master Crepus and the city of Mondstadt. However, the truth is that Kaeya was not abandoned, but intentionally placed in Mondstadt as an agent, whose mission is to further a mysterious “ancient plot”.
What is this ancient plot he has to fulfill? If Khaerin’ah and Monstadt went to war, will he remain loyal to his homeland, or will he stand together with the city he calls home? The possibility of him being a central figure in the story in the far future is fascinating and worth giving credit to.
With more updates awaiting us, this list is undoubtedly going to change as more characters are introduced to Genshin Impact. As of the 1.1 update, these are our picks on the top 6 male characters, ranked based on not only their in-game stats, but their personality and story too!
Do let us know what you think about this list by sharing your thoughts in the comments below.
Want to know what the 1.1 update has to offer? Watch our Genshin Impact stream here to find out more!
Why not Venti? This kid is also a guy