Genshin Impact May Have Just Extended Its Roadmap By A Full Year
The roadmap for Genshin Impact may have just been extended by a full year, even if it’s been kept somewhat secretive. The action RPG has been steadily following the roadmap that was announced back in 2020 after the title’s release. Year after year, players have been introduced to different regions of Teyvat and are pushing through the narrative story arcs for each Nation while also moving closer to the encounter between the Traveler siblings who were separated from each other at the start of the campaign by the Unknown God in Genshin Impact.
When the roadmap was announced, HoYoverse promised that one new Nation would be released every year. So far, players have explored Mondstadt and Liyue (released at launch), Inazuma in 2021, Sumeru in 2022, Fontaine in 2023, and Natlan in 2024. With six of the seven Nations of Teyvat already explored in the game, it’s natural to assume that Snezhnaya will be the next destination – after all, Snezhnaya is officially listed as the location for the Act VI Archon Quests. That may have changed, however, with the release of Snezhnaya in Genshin Impact being pushed back a whole year.
Nod-Krai Is Confirmed As Genshin Impact's New Destination In 2025
An NPC In Natlan Talks About The Traveler’s Next Stop
While Snezhnaya is the logical next destination on the Traveler’s journey, they may not explore the region in 2025 – at least not fully, like they have explored other Nations in previous years. At the end of the Natlan story arc, the Traveler has an opportunity to talk to an important character and, during the conversation, ask them questions about the lore and the future. This has been a recurring situation in the game, though one of the answers provided by the NPC in Genshin Impact may have just extended the game’s roadmap by a year by ignoring Snezhnaya.
When asking the NPC about the Traveler’s next destination, the character talks about how they should journey into an area called Nod-Krai. This place has already been mentioned by Liben a while ago, but the conversation with the NPC at the end of the Natlan story quests confirms that Nod-Krai is the Traveler’s next destination. This is somewhat surprising because Snezhnaya should be 2025’s new destination. Technically, Nod-Krai is a part of Snezhnaya in Genshin Impact, but the game has been distinguishing them from each other and giving more focus on the former rather than the latter.
HoYoverse Has Been Distinguishing Nod-Krai From Snezhnaya In Genshin Impact
Although It’s Part Of The Nation Of Cryo, A Lot Of Focus Is On Nod-Krai Specifically
Nod-Krai was teased by Liben during Version 5.1’s Marvelous Merchandise event, who described it as a hub for people from all around Teyvat thanks to the monetary opportunities therein. Although it’s part of the territory in Snezhnaya, Nod-Krai is known to be an autonomous area within the Nation of Cryo’s southern regions. Because of the wealth that surrounds it, Nod-Krai is also described to be a dangerous place. At the end of the Natlan story quests, the NPC also provides more information about the area, stating the people from Nod-Krai in Genshin Impact are able to wield a unique power.
According to them, this power is even older than the seven elements, though details about how it works are still unknown. The NPC also states the Fatui Harbinger known as The Doctor, who has been investigating Ancient Moon’s Remnants, has a stronghold in Nod-Krai, specifically. At this moment, the character also states that Nod-Krai is “a land with long history not far from Snezhnaya.” This indicates that Nod-Krai is a stop on the Traveler’s journey before they actually step foot into Snezhnaya as a full nation. HoYoverse seems to be avoiding Snezhnaya as a topic in Genshin Impact.
In fact, it seems like the developer is focusing its efforts on selling Nod-Krai as an individual new region to explore this year before fully diving into the Nation of Cryo. Before the end of the Version 5.3 quests was even released, there had been a leak indicating that Nod-Krai would truly be the game’s next destination. According to information provided by the leaker known as HXG, which was shared in a post flagged as “Questionable” on Reddit, Nod-Krai will be released in Genshin Impact 6.0 in 2025 while Snezhnaya will only arrive in Version 7.0.
Snezhnaya May Only Be Released In Genshin Impact In 2026
Version 6.X Patches May Focus On Nod-Krai & Other Areas Of Already Known Nations
The distinction between Nod-Krai and Snezhnaya, even if the former is a sub-region of the latter, may be indicative that the leak about the release schedule for the next two years may be true. This is also backed up by another leak, which was provided by Flying Flame. Also shared in a post flagged as “Questionable” on Reddit, the leak says that the Version 6.X patches will introduce map areas that have been mentioned in the game and that have not yet been released. As examples, the post lists Mount Esus and Dornman Port.
This could also include Natlan’s Mare Jivari in Genshin Impact.
Normally, a new Nation of Teyvat would be released and in the immediate subsequent updates, more areas would be added. If Version 6.0 introduces Nod-Krai and the other 6.X patches add areas from other Nations of Teyvat, Snezhnaya’s release may have been pushed into 2026. Once the Version 5.X patches are over, this may be a very different year for the game’s release calendar in comparison to how it’s been in previous years. It would also mean that the roadmap in Genshin Impact has grown. This, in turn, should also push all the other Chapters back, too.
Snezhnaya was expected to arrive in 2025, followed by Khaenri’ah in 2026. If Nod-Krai is the focus of 2025 and the other leaks are accurate, then Snezhnaya should arrive in 2026 and Khaenri’ah in 2027. This is considering that another year of alternative content like the one speculated for this year doesn’t occur between the releases of Snezhnaya and Khaenri’ah in Genshin Impact, but that may happen. Although the roadmap may have just been expanded, it should come as no surprise. The action RPG is highly profitable and the longer it lasts, the more revenue it will generate for HoYoverse.
Even if the game doesn’t dive into Snezhnaya in 2025, players will still be introduced to new areas, new story quests, and new characters to pull for, and that should keep the title moving forward despite the prolonged absence of the Nation of Cryo. For now, the leaks should be taken with caution, but the in-game revelations do seem to confirm that Nod-Krai is the next big destination for the Traveler in 2025, so Snezhnaya may only be released in Genshin Impact 7.0, in 2026.
Source: Reddit (1, 2)

Genshin Impact
- Released
- September 28, 2020
- ESRB
- T for Teen - Fantasy Violence, Alcohol Reference
- Developer(s)
- HoYoverse (Formerly miHoYo)
- Publisher(s)
- HoYoverse (Formerly miHoYo)
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross Save
- yes
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- yes
- Platform(s)
- Mobile, iOS, Android, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- X|S Optimized
- yes
- Metascore
- 86
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- Mobile, PC, PS4 & PS5
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong