Honkai Star Rail PC: Is It Worth Playing a Game with the Same Company as Genshin Impact?

Even though Genshin Impact was HoYoverse’s sixth game, it was what really put their name out there to the video gaming world and made them into a billion-dollar company. However, while much of their profits were funnelled back into Genshin Impact, a good chunk was invested into their next title: Honkai Star Rail. So, is it worth playing the same game from Genshin Impact’s company?

Related: Burned Out in 2023: The Repetitive Grind of Honkai Star Rail and Genshin Impact

Is It Worth Playing Honkai Star Rail?

The short answer is yes. Honkai Star Rail is worth playing, especially if you’re burnt out from Genshin Impact and want to grind something fresh. However, if you want us to break down why exactly you should at least try out Honkai Star Rail, then keep reading!

1. Refreshing Turn-Based Combat

Moving away from Genshin Impact’s hack-and-slash combat system, Honkai Star Rail introduces HoYoverse fans to its own version of turn-based combat. While it may come off as a series of simple battles involving four characters that possess three moves, casual players will be delighted to unravel several layers of complexity.

For instance, every character has an elemental type (Physical, Ice, Imaginary, Quantum), and every enemy possesses a weakness to an element. Furthermore, capitalising off an enemy’s weakness not only results in additional damage but also contributes to breaking their shield. Once completely broken, the enemy is stunned and vulnerable to significant damage multipliers.

Another way in which HoYoverse spices up Star Rail’s combat is by granting characters, especially 5-star characters, unique passive abilities so the battle doesn’t just boil down to resource gain and expenditure. There is much more to learn about the game’s turn-based combat, so try it out and see for yourself!

2. The Good Old Progression System

Farming artifacts, talent books, daily commissions, ascension materials, and much more make it worth logging into Genshin Impact every day. Honkai Star Rail, as such, has a very similar progression system that is slightly reskinned and re-polished. So, all you Genshin Impact players need not worry about getting used to a completely new progression system.

For instance, daily commissions are reskinned as four daily training tasks, where three are combat-based, and the last one can either be talking-based or combat-based (Albeit slightly more challenging). Furthermore, your character talents are now organised into a rich talent tree that still contains the same information but gives the illusion of something new.

Honkai Star Rail’s progression system also has interesting additions that Genshin Impact players would appreciate. A prime example of this would be artifacts, or relics, which now have six slots instead of five: Four of them give one four-set or two two-set bonuses, while the remaining two are to be slotted in with a completely different relic set altogether. Log into Honkai Star Rail to see for yourself!

3. Clever Level Design Instead of Massive Open World

A reservation many Genshin Impact players may have is that Honkai Star Rail is not open-world, and as such, its exploration won’t be as fun. However, a closed world allows developers to carefully design their levels, not just in terms of the flow of gameplay but also graphically.

As far as exploration goes, it’d be unfair to say that every story level is entirely linear. Should you choose to traverse every path you see, you’ll frequently end up in bonus sections of a story level where you can collect generous loot, beat surprisingly difficult challenges, and unlock interesting tidbits of lore.

The prospects of level design are practically limitless, as there is much to take inspiration from and many more levels of craft in the near future. Even now, for example, in some levels, Honkai Star Rail has incorporated that Souls-like mechanic where you traverse the level in a loop-like fashion, only to unlock a shortcut back to where you originally were.

Related: How to Take Photos in Honkai Star Rail?

4. Top-Tier Visual Effects and Special Effects

The Honkai Star Rail experience transcends the ‘Genshin but in space’, vibe due to the level of passion the developers have put into making this game stand on its own two feet. They have genuinely capitalised off the closed-world nature of the game by enriching each area with great contrast and Sci-Fi details, from the Astral Train to the planets below.

Moreover, the character interactions feel much more anime-like due to the enhanced unity engine on which the game is built upon, which allows for more facial expressions as well as lip sync across all languages. The characters themselves also stand out in terms of character design, which is made all the more prominent in their talent animations mid-battle; This applies to 4-Star Characters as well!

Lastly, Honkai Star Rail’s music composition is absolutely breathtaking, especially during climactic boss fights. These sequences are bound to give you goosebumps and go down as some of the most memorable moments in the game!

5. Same Gacha System, but with a Forgiving Twist

Since Genshin Impact’s gacha system has made HoYoverse billions of dollars, it’s no surprise to see the same model being implemented in Honkai Star Rail. However, there’s a slight twist in the sense that HoYoverse seems to be much more eager to give new players a 5-Star character. Let us explain.

Firstly, similar to how there is the 20-wish Beginners’ Wish banner in Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail has a 50-wish Departure Warp. However, the catch is that you are guaranteed to get a standard 5-Star character at some point within those 50 wishes! Currently, these include Himeko, Geopard, Yaqing, Welt, Bailu, Clara, and Bronya.

Secondly, aside from the limited-time banner that cycles with every patch, Honkai Star Rail also has its own version of Genshin Impact’s standard banner, known as the Stellar Warp. What’s different in this case is that you are free to choose a standard 5-Star character after making your 150th pull! 

6. Amazing Sci-Fi Storyline with Memorable Easter Eggs

Just to get it out of the way, Honkai Star Rail’s storyline is not connected to Honkai Impact Third; The only similarity is the philosophy of the cosmic forces that rule both universes. With that said, you can dive into Honkai Star Rail with or without having played any HoYoverse game and still enjoy its story.

The story itself is very good, comparable to the peak story-telling HoYoverse demonstrated with Genshin Impact’s Sumeru arc, truly showing that they have improved their storytelling over the past few years. Moreover, there is also no equivalent of Paimon in Honkai Star Rail, meaning that it can get serious very quickly.

Aside from getting serious, Honkai Star Rail can be pretty hilarious sometimes as well with its self-referential jokes and easter eggs, similar to something you’ll see in Undertale. There are also Genshin Impact references in the game, and even a rick-roll hiding in plain sight – start playing Honkai Star Rail to uncover these yourself!

Also Read: How to Unlock Stagnant Shadows in Honkai Star Rails

Conclusion

Honkai Star Rail truly shows that HoYoverse didn’t try to clone Genshin Impact in a different setting for more profit. Instead, they crafted this game by taking the strong aspects of their former game whilst improving upon its weaknesses, potentially putting out their most polished game yet. So, what are you waiting for? Try out Honkai Star Rail today!

Frequently Asked Questions

What Platforms Is Honkai Star Rail On?

Honkai Star Rail is currently available on PC (Via Epic Games) and on Mobile (Both Android and iOS). While it is best experienced on PC in high definition and 60 FPS, it is quite playable on mobile as well due to its turn-based nature. Additionally, as far as consoles go, while HoYoverse has confirmed that Honkai Star Rail will come to consoles, a date has yet to be announced.

What Are the Minimum OS Requirements for Honkai Star Rail?

On PC, Honkai Star Rail requires at least Windows 7 with a 64-bit process alongside 20 GB of free space. On Android, Honkai Star Rail requires at least Android 8 alongside 8 GB and 500 MB of free space. On iOS, Honkai Star Rail requires at least iOS 10.0 alongside 9 GB of free space.

Can Honkai Star Rail Be Played Offline?

Similar to Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail requires an active internet connection to be played. You can play on one of four servers: America, Asia, Europe, and TW/HK/MO (Taiwan, Hongkong, Macao). Furthermore, progression is tied to each server, and you can not transfer account data from one server to another.