miHoYo to Cooperate With ufotable on Animation Project

Shanghai-based game developer miHoYo has announced on September 16 that it will soon kick off its “Genshin Impact” animation project in partnership with ufotable, a well-known Japanese animation production company. Meanwhile, Beijing Ultron Event Horizon Co., Ltd. will assist in production and will be responsible for the operations of the production committee.

Genshin Impact is an open world adventure game launched by miHoYo on September 28, 2020. According to data from market research firm Sensor Tower, cumulative revenue from the game in the first year since it was launched on Google Play and the App Store exceeded $2.3 billion. In August this year, it also ranked third in the global mobile game revenue list.

Genshin Impact has previously released many short films related to the game, such as “A Winter Night’s Lazzo,” “Tsubaki in Thawing Snow,” and others. They have more than 17 million and 11 million page views respectively, among which “A Winter Night’s Lazzo” has amassed more than 11.8 million views on YouTube. Many viewers asked in the comments section whether Genshin Impact will launch longer animation works. “The response and support of players far exceeded expectations. We feel grateful and will continue to work hard to offer more and better content to everyone,” said a spokesperson for “Genshin Impact.”

Regarding this cooperation with Genshin Impact, ufotable said that relevant work has already started in the studio. The company has many world-famous works in animation production. The animated film “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” produced by the firm was released in 2020, and the global box office exceeded $500 million. In addition, its representative works include Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works.

miHoYo is speeding up the pace of its overseas expansion. Earlier this year, it announced the launch of HoYoverse, an overseas brand featuring the metaverse, which will help expand its content production, technology research and distribution functions through offices in Montreal, Los Angeles, Singapore, Tokyo and Seoul.

In July, HoYoverse’s headquarters were officially opened in Singapore. In the future, the Singapore office will be a key hub for its global distribution and operations, working closely with other offices and providing technical support for game development.

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On September 14, the social media homepage of Jim Yang, the former head of Supercell, a Finnish game developer, showed that he had joined miHoYo. According to industry insiders, Yang, who has now taken over the post of president of HoYoverse, is expected to provide assistance for miHoYo’s overseas publicity, distribution strategy and brand development with his profound experience in games and company operation.