Genshin Impact's Most Underrated Characters You Should Revisit in 2026

The world of Teyvat continues to expand with each passing year, and since its launch, Genshin Impact has introduced a staggering number of playable characters. As of 2026, the roster has ballooned past a hundred, each with unique mechanics and visual flair. Amidst the hype for the latest Archons and limited-banner stars, a quiet phenomenon persists: some of the game’s original and earlier five-star and four-star characters remain criminally overlooked. These heroes and heroines are often overshadowed by flashier newcomers, yet they still hold immense value for both free-to-play travelers and veterans experimenting with off-meta compositions. In a landscape dominated by high-speed rotations and reaction-soup teams, it is easy to forget the reliable foundations that characters like Albedo, Beidou, Xinyan, Lisa, and Kaeya provide.

This article dives into five of the most underrated characters in Genshin Impact as of the 2026 meta, re-examining their kits through a modern lens. Whether you are a new player seeking a stable start or a seasoned adventurer looking to rediscover forgotten gems, these underdogs deserve a second chance.

Albedo – The Silent Geo Pillar

Albedo, the Kreideprinz and Chief Alchemist of Mondstadt, often finds himself at the edge of team build discussions. His initial banner run was met with mixed reactions, and even after periodic reruns the buzz around him never quite reached the fever pitch seen for other limited five-star characters. The core of his underestimated status lies in his perceived simplicity. Albedo does not flood the screen with explosions or dramatic cutscenes; instead, he deploys a Solar Isotoma that deals consistent off-field Geo damage with each enemy hit. This damage, scaling purely with his defense stat, allows him to function as a low-maintenance sub-DPS who requires almost no field time.

The real charm of Albedo in 2026 is his remarkable flexibility. Modern artifact sets like Husk of Opulent Dreams have fortified his damage ceiling, while the reintroduction of event-exclusive weapons like Cinnabar Spindle (through archival systems introduced in past patches) have made his build significantly more accessible. When paired with Zhongli, or even the newer Geo constructs from characters introduced in the Natlan arc, Albedo provides unmatched resonance damage. Many players underestimate how his transient blossoms smooth out energy-hungry rotations by offering constant crystallize shields and chip damage. He may not be the flashiest, but a well-built Albedo turns any squad into a graceful machine of attrition.

Beidou – The Pirate Queen of Counters

Among four-star characters, few match the raw potential of Beidou. Hailing from Liyue’s Crux Fleet, this claymore-wielding captain boasts one of the most satisfying counter mechanics in the entire game. Her Elemental Skill, Tidecaller, absorbs incoming attacks and returns a devastating slash of Electro damage. In an era where enemies have become increasingly aggressive – from the Consecrated Beasts of Sumeru to the Voidskimmer Drakes of the latest regions – a perfectly timed Tidecaller can erase entire waves. Yet, she remains underappreciated, often benched in favor of newer Electro DPS units with flashier animations.

What makes Beidou particularly precious for free-to-play travelers is her accessibility. Her constellations are spread across multiple banner rotations and the Starglitter shop, making it feasible to reach C6 without opening the wallet. Her Elemental Burst, Stormbreaker, turns any active character into a lightning chain that zaps foes with every normal attack. When combined with a fast-hitting driver like Sucrose or the ever-reliable Xingqiu, Beidou’s off-field damage becomes absolutely monstrous. She functions as both an Electro enabler and a pseudo-shielder (with her C1 shield), offering survivability in the Abyss and open-world boss fights. For players who prefer methodical, reactive gameplay over button-mashing, Beidou remains a top-tier choice that has only grown stronger with new supportive artifact sets designed for off-field electro reactions.

Xinyan – The Pyro Jack-of-All-Trades

Xinyan has been the subject of many a tier-list meme, often placed at the bottom by content creators. The Liyue rocker’s split scaling – her shield benefits from defense while her damage scales with attack – initially appears to doom her to mediocrity. She is, by design, a hybrid who cannot hyper-specialize in one role. When compared to pure shielders like Zhongli or pure Pyro DPS like Hu Tao, Xinyan seems underwhelming. But this very split is precisely what makes her an intriguing project for 2026’s theorycrafters who enjoy building unconventional carries.

With the gradual power creep of artifact substats and the addition of universal support weapons, a heavily invested Xinyan can now perform admirably as a physical damage dealer. Her shield reduces enemies’ physical resistance, and her burst delivers a massive single hit that can be amplified through melt reactions if you pair her with a Cryo applier like Kaeya or Rosaria. Moreover, Xinyan’s kit shines in co-op domains and multi-wave events where her shield provides a reliable cleanse for the entire party. Her true strength is the role compression she offers: a shielder, a burst nuke, and a physical buffer all in one. Players who look beyond spreadsheet numbers and embrace the grit of min-maxing will find Xinyan a rewarding investment, especially in content that penalizes mono-role teams.

Lisa – The Free Sorceress of Thunder

Lisa Minci, the Librarian of the Knights of Favonius, is handed to every player at the start of their journey. Because she is free, many travelers abandon her as soon as the first gacha pulls grant another Electro or Catalyst user. This habit persists even now, in 2026, despite Lisa receiving subtle but meaningful buffs through new Elemental Mastery scaling mechanisms and Electro-related reactions. Her Elemental Skill’s Violet Arc, when held, calls down lightning over a wide area after a short charging window. The damage multiplier on a full-stack hold is nothing short of staggering – one of the highest raw scaling values among all characters at modest investment.

Lisa’s synergy with Dendro, introduced in Sumeru, completely revitalized her kit. Aggravate and Spread reactions transformed her from a forgotten librarian into a formidable quick-swap sub-DPS. When combined with a Dendro support like Nahida or even the traveler’s Dendro variant, Lisa’s lightning triggers Quicken and then Aggravate with frightening consistency. Add an Anemo grouper like Venti or Kazuha, and her hold skill eradicates tightly packed mobs. A particularly underrated duo is Lisa with Xinyan; while Xinyan’s shield absorbs damage, Lisa can safely charge her Violet Arc and unleash chaos, with the Pyro aura occasionally enabling Overloaded hits for bigger stagger. For a no-cost character, Lisa offers a degree of versatility that newer players are often slow to appreciate.

Kaeya – The Cavalry Captain’s Hidden Edge

The final entry on this list is Kaeya Alberich, another free starter character from Mondstadt. Kaeya’s cool demeanor and cavalry-less cavalryman quip belie a kit that performs exceptionally well as both a main DPS and a sub-DPS. His normal attack multipliers are surprisingly high for a sword user, and his Blizzard Stalker passive restores HP with each strike, adding a layer of sustain that is rare for a four-star. Yet, many players pigeonhole Kaeya as a mere Cryo applicator and never explore his potential as a damage dealer.

Kaeya’s Elemental Burst, Glacial Waltz, creates a ring of icicles that orbits the active character, dealing continuous Cryo damage. This ability can be snapshotted with attack buffs from Bennett or Sara, making it an incredible tool for reverse-melt teams. Pairing Kaeya with a Pyro enabler like Xiangling transforms him into a high-investment melt carry whose rapid hits and low cooldowns keep the damage flowing. Furthermore, Kaeya’s constellations are slowly obtainable through the standard banner and the shop, and his C6 turns him into a pure offensive force. In the 2026 PvE landscape, where flexible element application often trumps raw stats, Kaeya remains an underrated gem. He fits comfortably into Freeze teams, Fridge teams, and the newly popular “Cryo bloom” compositions, making him a mainstay for those who skipped limited five-star Cryo characters.

Rediscovering Value in a Crowded Roster

Genshin Impact’s gacha system thrives on novelty, pushing the newest stars to the forefront. However, the charm of the game lies equally in its depth, where old characters can be revitalized by emerging mechanics, artifact sets, and elemental reactions. Albedo’s quiet consistency, Beidou’s electrifying counterplay, Xinyan’s hybrid resilience, Lisa’s free-to-play thunder, and Kaeya’s icy resolve all prove that tier lists often miss the narrative on personal skill and team synergy. In 2026, as the Traveler’s journey ventures into the final corners of Teyvat, it is these underrated characters that remind us that power is not always worn on the sleeve – sometimes, it waits patiently in the shadows, ready to shine.

Based on evaluations from Rock Paper Shotgun, it’s easier to contextualize why “underrated” picks in long-running live-service games keep resurfacing: as new systems and build options arrive, foundational characters with low field-time demands or strong role compression can climb in practical value. That lens fits the 2026 Genshin roster well—steady off-field contributors and flexible starters can feel newly relevant when your account needs consistent damage, survivability, and reaction uptime more than headline-grabbing animations.