The Chinese studio behind ‘Genshin Impact’ built a new fantasy nation. Players say it’s just modern Russia — frozen, broke, and rotten with corruption.

The “Merciless Frost” update to the popular Chinese-developed game Genshin Impact added a new country called Snezhnaya, inspired by Eastern Europe — and, of course, Russia.

Officially, the studio created a fictional fantasy state.

But the situation there is eerily similar to conditions in real-life Russia: corruption, high prices, and resource shortages.

If you look for it, you can even see a reference to Alexey Navalny in a new character named Alyosha.

Meduza explains what Genshin Impact is and why this particular update stands out from the rest.