Microsoft regrets missing out on Genshin Impact, miHoYo's $3.7 billion F2P hit

Microsoft reportedly regrets not partnering with Chinese developer miHoYo before Genshin Impact became a billion-dollar sensation.

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The old saying is true, hindsight is indeed 20/20. Sources have told Reuters that Microsoft feels that it missed a valuable opportunity by not partnering with miHoYo to bring Genshin Impact to Xbox. On paper, this certainly seems true: Genshin Impact is a mega-hit that has generated $3.7 billion on mobile devices alone, and was one of the five free-to-play games to generate $2 billion on Sony's PlayStation Network.

According to the report, Microsoft was unable to reach a deal with the Chinese game developer, miHoYo, who chose to partner with Sony and bring Genshin Impact to PlayStation instead. This sense of regret and loss is apparently a big motivator driving Microsoft's efforts to recruit Chinese game devs to bolster its Xbox Game Pass subscription network.

Microsoft has been expanding its horizons to bring a variety of new regional games to Xbox, including Persona 5, which recently arrived on Xbox Game Pass and Xbox consoles for the first time ever, and previous efforts include inclusiong of SEGA's Yakuza series.

The expansion into China is aimed at reinforcing its cross-platform, subscription-powered ecosystem of games and services.

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"Picking up 'Genshin Impact' made Sony a lot of money," a source told Reuters. How did Genshin Impact make Sony?

We don't know for sure, but Genshin Impact is listed as #2 out of the 5 top-earning free-to-play games on PS4 for Sony's Fiscal Year 2021.

It's also worth noting Genshin Impact is only available on the Epic Games Store PC client. It's not available on Steam or the Microsoft Store.