Genshin Impact Player Clears Hardest Dungeon with an Apple Watch—But What Does This Really Prove?

This Genshin Impact Feat Is Wild-But It’s Not About the Apple Watch

Every so often, the gaming community stumbles upon a story that doesn’t just show off skill-it reframes what “playing” even means. Over the past week, Genshin Impact fans have been buzzing over a video making the rounds on Bilibili: a player clearing Spiral Abyss Floor 12 (the game’s most brutal timed dungeon) with, of all things, an Apple Watch. And not just squeaking by, but nailing a perfect nine-star score where most players, even on desktops, fall short. As flashy as the setup is, there’s a deeper conversation here about what gaming achievement actually means in 2024.

• A player beat Genshin Impact’s toughest endgame raid using just an Apple Watch as a controller.
• They hit a perfect 9-star score, something even veteran PC/console players sweat over.
• This isn’t just a weird flex-it’s a snapshot of how gaming achievement keeps evolving.

Breaking Down the Madness: Why This Caught My Eye

I’ve seen speedruns done with pianos, bananas, DDR mats—you name it. But as a longtime Genshin Impact player, beating Floor 12 with full stars is no joke, even with ideal equipment. We’re talking about cycling through abilities perfectly, managing DPS rotations, and surviving some of the nastiest mobs Hoyoverse ever dreamed up. Turn that already demanding challenge into a battle with screen real estate (the Apple Watch’s display is laughably tiny), and you’re playing the game on Nightmare+ mode.

If you’re new to Genshin’s endgame, Floor 12 of Spiral Abyss is the final proving ground. You have a timer breathing down your neck, three rooms stacked with some of the hardest-hitting, most annoying enemies in the game (shoutout to Automaton “Surveillance” and the infamous King Yumkasaure—these names haunt every veteran). Most “normal” players either settle for a partial star clear, or try for weeks to perfect their runs with mouse and keyboard. Doing it on a tiny 44mm touchscreen? Completely absurd, but undeniably impressive.

The Real Story: Gaming as a Performance Art

What’s wild isn’t the tech involved—mirroring your phone or PC to an Apple Watch is clever, but it basically just makes things way harder for no benefit. The real draw is what it represents: how modern gaming “achievement” culture has evolved. People aren’t satisfied with beating games any more, or even speedrunning them. Now, it’s about doing the impossible just to make a mark: controller mods, challenge runs, and now wearable-only clears. It’s showmanship, turned up to eleven.

This kind of performance reminds me of the “no-hit” Elden Ring runs when that launched, or when someone beat all of Dark Souls with a Guitar Hero controller. On one hand, it’s hilarious. On the other, it’s a genuine display of adaptability and skill. Genshin’s community has its gripes (the game’s time-gated grind comes up ad nauseum), but nobody can deny the creativity that’s exploded from fans trying to bend Hoyoverse’s systems in wild new ways.

But Will This Change How We Play? (Don’t Count On It)

Let’s be real—nobody’s about to toss their phone for an Apple Watch-only Genshin run. This is about making your mark online, not improving your actual play. Still, I love how these absurd challenge runs help spotlight just how deep (and punishing) Genshin’s endgame really is. Tons of players never even try Spiral Abyss, let alone shoot for a perfect nine-star clear. The fact that someone did it under these wild constraints forces most of us to look in the mirror and appreciate just how good the really obsessed can get.

Does it mean Genshin needs to rethink its controls or accessibility? Not at all. If anything, it shows the opposite: how sturdy the combat system is, even when players handicap themselves. And as the game’s original fanbase gets older and looks for new ways to stand out, expect more viral “impossible” runs to crop up—not just in Genshin, but in every game with a dedicated challenge community.

TL;DR: More Than a Stunt, Less Than a Revolution

Clearing Genshin Impact’s toughest dungeon with an Apple Watch isn’t the next big innovation, but it is a perfect snapshot of where gaming culture is heading. It’s less about the tech, more about stretching what’s possible. I doubt the rest of us will be strapping on wearables for our next Spiral Abyss attempt—but it’s hard not to root for the kind of wild ambition that keeps the community vibrant and, honestly, a little bit ridiculous. Here’s to the next absurd flex—whatever device it’s on.