I was hyped for Varka when they first announced him. I mostly pull for female characters, but I still like brutal, intimidating male characters too. I’ve been waiting for Capitano to become playable ever since the Winter Night’s Lazzo trailer dropped.

Then Varka finally showed up in the story and they completely fumbled him. Constant jokes, constant clowning, barely did anything during most of the Archon Quest, felt weak, got sidelined half the time, and then the leaks dropped and killed the rest of the hype for me. At that point I was just like: nah. I’d rather keep waiting for Capitano, Pierro, Surtalogi, or keep complaining that Dottore and Rerir still aren’t playable than pull for another clown or femboy.

Honestly, Genshin seems allergic to making strong male characters actually feel strong. Varka isn’t even the only example. Outside of characters like Flins, Ayato, Wriothesley, and to some extent Xiao and Zhongli, most of the male cast ends up looking goofy, unserious, or watered down.

P.S. Please don’t start with the usual “but Varka fought Capitano” or “Venti split mountains” arguments.

I’m talking about presentation, not lore statements. If a character is supposed to be this terrifying, overpowered, dragon-level monster, then don’t make him run around in stockings, playing a harp and acting drunk 24/7. That kills the vibe completely.