Many fans were expecting a new region to be in Version 1.6 of Genshin Impact. This new region, called Inazuma, is focused on the Electro element and home to the Archon Baal. However, players will not be going there in the 1.6; instead, they'll begin their journeys by visiting a new island. If developer miHoYo continues this trend, then it's likely Inazuma won't actually debut until the impending Version 2.0 update.
Leaks from the 1.6 beta test seemed to suggest Inazuma was arriving soon, but this has turned out not to be the case. Instead, players will be exploring a new island in Genshin Impact with Klee, Jean, and Barbara. This will mark the beginning of their journey to Inazuma, but they won't quite reach the new nation in this latest update.
Since Genshin Impact is a free-to-play game, miHoYo may end up staggering its Inazuma releases in the same way it release its story content. Players will have a new island to explore with each update, slowly progressing toward Inazuma. It's a way to keep players invested while also giving miHoYo plenty of time to perfect Inazuma, which has so far mostly been shown off in concept art. And since Inazuma characters like Kazuha are already being added, it's yet another way to stretch out content and keep the hype for the new region going.
Genshin Impact: When Inazuma Could Finally Arrive
A beta test for Version 1.7 is currently underway; considering how common leaks from past beta tests have been, there's a good chance the content from this update will surface online as well. So, there's a good chance fans will soon know whether or not Inazuma is in the 1.7 update. However, given that miHoYo has mostly made teases with concept art, it seems like the new nation is still a long time from actually being included in-game.
miHoYo has also already teased new Inazuma characters like Yomiya, Ayaka, and Sayu, none of whom have appeared in Genshin Impact yet and are presumably being added later in 1.6 or in 1.7. Introducing these characters while holding off on revealing Inazuma could be a clever way to keep players from losing their patience, especially if the new region is still a long ways off.
For now, there's been no official confirmation when Inazuma will be arriving. However, it certainly seems possible miHoYo will wait to bring in such a massive content update until Version 2.0 is ready. Assuming this occurs after 1.9, and based on the usual update schedule for Genshin Impact, this means 2.0 shouldn't release until early December, over a full year since the free-to-play RPG initially released.