Just when we got wind that Genshin Impact had the biggest global launch ever for an original Chinese IP (intellectual property), comes another earth-shattering news – according to Sensor Tower, Genshin Impact raked in US$245 million within the first month of its release, cementing its status as one of the largest mobile game launch so far.

Since its launch late September, the MiHoYo-developed game saw a steady weekly revenue of approximately US$60 million, on both the App Store and Google Play nevertheless. The only other mobile title to surpass the free-to-play game’s success is Pokémon GO, which raked in around US$283 million within 30 days of its release.

Aside from its beautifully-realised art style, engaging characters, rewarding combat and its availability on all mainstream platforms sans Nintendo Switch (so far), Genshin Impact‘s wild success is attributed to its gacha mechanics, allowing players to buy “wishes” to get random items, with the chance of getting special weapons and characters, either with the currency they earn in-game or their own money.

Although gacha in free-to-play games is commonplace and widely accepted in Asia, especially China, Japan, and South Korea, gamers in the USA feel differently, noting similarities between loot boxes/gacha and gambling. Even so, at least Genshin Impact is transparent about the odds of winning certain in-game items, which the likes of Shadow of War and Star Wars Battlefront II failed to do and came under scrutiny.

Genshin Impact is available on iOS, Android, PC and PS4; a Nintendo Switch version is reportedly on the way too.