Genshin Impact is getting a lesser lord and a sleepy university student in update 3.2

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Say hello to Layla and Nahida

New Genshin Impact character Layla stares at the screen
(Image credit: Mihoyo)

Mihoyo has revealed a duo of new Genshin Impact characters that we’ll likely see in update 3.2. 

First up, we have Nahida, the diminutive Lesser Lord Kusnali, who Mihoyo teases as having “dwelt deep in the Sanctuary of Surasthana” and never really being in the limelight. As such, she’s not been mentioned all that much. She uses the dendro element if your party is short of someone who uses that. 

The other character revealed is Layla, who is “half-awake, half-asleep, all incredulous” – arguably making her one of Genshin Impact’s most relatable characters yet. Regarding her actual backstory, she’s a Rtawahist student who specialises in theoretical astrology and draws star charts tirelessly to write her thesis. She uses the cryo element when called into battle, but would clearly much rather be napping. 

While Mihoyo hasn’t confirmed which update these two will be dropping in, the developer typically reveals new characters a patch ahead of time. We’re getting Genshin Impact’s 3.1 update this week, so we’ll likely see the pair in the next patch as that’s typically the pattern we’ve got for a good while now. Mihoyo typically aims to update Genshin Impact every six weeks, so you’ll likely see them in November, with a proper showcase coming in the 3.2 livestream. 

In other news, Mihoyo has recently discussed Genshin Impact's new player experience. While the gacha game remains popular, content bloat is something all major live-service games have to deal with.

"This is an issue we are considering as well," Hoyoverse said of the new-player experience to PLAY Magazine. "While we continue to produce more exciting content, we are also trying to ease the burden of returning players or new players.

"In addition to the ongoing system optimizations and beginner tutorial adjustments, client capacity optimization, and intelligent management of past content are also under development," the team added. 

Check out the Genshin Impact Canvas of Starlight Memories web event for some free primogems and other rewards in the time being. 

Iain Harris
Iain Harris
News Editor, Games

I joined GamesRadar+ in May 2022 following stints at PCGamesN and PocketGamer.Biz, with some freelance for Kotaku UK, RockPaperShotgun, and VG24/7 thrown in for good measure. When I'm not running the news team on the games side, you'll find me putting News Editor duties to one side to play the hottest JRPG of 20 years ago or pillaging the depths of Final Fantasy 14 for a swanky new cloak – the more colourful, the better.