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Two years after being announced, Wuthering Waves is nearing its release. You might wonder if gacha games would still prove popular in 2024 but one look at Wuthering Waves’ pre-registration numbers should put any doubt to rest. Even before launch it seems people are queueing up in droves to get to play it with a staggering milestone recently being hit, and surpassed.
It would be easy to write off Wuthering Waves as a Genshin Impact clone and to be fair there are some similarities. Even outside of its core as a gacha game, the art style, open world, and a few other bits and pieces definitely nudge into the same area. Where Wuthering Waves sets itself apart, however, is its combat. Aiming for a more intense, soulslike combat experience which rewards counters and parries, this is an active game where you’ll have to be on guard if you want to succeed.
After several closed beta sessions it seems that Wuthering Waves’ mix of RPG and gacha mechanics with punishing-yet-rewarding combat has brought it more than a few fans. At the time of writing there have been a staggering 30,519,115 pre-registrations for the free-to-play game, with that number rising constantly. To put that in context, that’s roughly the same number of people who live in Nepal.
Of course, none of this means the game will prove to be a success at launch, there could be a variety of issues or gameplay choices which drive players away. What it does do is point firmly at how popular gacha games remain and how enduring they have become in an often under-examined area of gaming.
Looking to the future, it’s still to be determined if it’s possible to take Genshin Impact’s crown. With a reported 66 million players having logged into the reigning gacha juggernaut, Wuthering Waves still has a way to go.
Wuthering Waves will launch on Wednesday May 22 and you can pre-register your interest over on the game’s website. If you’d like to step into something different, our guide to the best RPGs will see you living your best and most dragon-y life. Or you can look into our best open-world games guide, if the wilds are calling your name.
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