With Natlan upon us I think it'd be a good idea to remember what Fontaine was like. Refresh our memories of where the story has been to see what else is in store now.
Natlan will be a very unique region for Genshin. Previously each of the regions was based on a real life nation. Mondstadt was based on medieval era Germany otherwise known as the Holy Roman Empire. It also hearkened to Germany's links to neighboring Prussia with Fischl's Immernachtreich and of course neighboring France which itself is the basis for Mondstadt's neighbor Fontaine. Liyue is of course Genshin's China and right off its shores is Inazuma based on Japan. South of Liyue and bordering it with a large mountain range is the India edge of Achaemenid Persia. The border is even true to life as the China side of the Himalayas is dry and rocky just like the Chasm while the Indian side is lush, wet rainforest just like Sumeru's rainforest. On the other side of this is the Sumeru desert which in based on the other extreme of Persia's extensive borders, Egypt.
However Natlan isn't based on any single region. Instead there are references to the American continent and its former native population, their neighboring Polynesian groups and finally and most distantly, there are references to all corners of the African continent too. So it'll be interesting to see where miHoYo takes this one and how it'll fit in so many unrelated cultures and histories together into a single coherent story.
But for now let's head back to Fontaine and get reacquainted with the people we've come to know over the last year!
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