PC Critic Reviews

Shines as brightly as any of the celestial bodies it tasks players with visiting. The quality of content at launch is, quite simply, incredible - it really looks, feels, and plays like a live service game that has already been out for years. Its turn-based combat might, tragically, not be for everyone, even in spite of its depth of tactics and highly customizable loadouts. That should be something everyone decides for themselves, however. Honkai: Star Rail is a must-play 2023 release that could very well become the next big thing in live service games, and will, if nothing else, become one of the better RPG releases in recent memory.

Despite its gacha systems, Honkai: Star Rail is an impeccable turn-based RPG with a killer visual style.

Honkai: Star Rail upholds miHoYo's strong reputation for compelling RPGs. Even with the gacha systems, it offers a fun free-to-play experience with fun story-telling, interesting companions and sleek gameplay.

With stellar storytelling and satisfying progression that offer dozens of hours of content that newcomers and hardcore players can enjoy, Honkai: Star Rail is a free-to-play RPG that might hook you for months – without making you feel like you have to pay.

From classic JRPG-style turn based action to the latest cartoon graphics, even the cross-platform. Honkai: Star Rail truly is a dream come true for the fans of the genre. Attractive characters are backing up the well-developed combat system which encourages deep-dive exploration. However, if you are not the fan of anime culture, the story maybe a bit hard to understand because of the excessive proper nouns and concepts.

With Honkai Star Rail, Hoyoverse has shown that its luck is not simple and that the success of its productions is due to the ability of the teams to create experiences that are open to all, able to involve thanks to well-characterized characters and gameplay that keeps glued to the screen. Despite the unoriginal plot and maps with a very rigid structure, the free to play from the creators of Genshin Impact boasts a turn-based combat system that proved to be spot on and some endgame modes that convinced us. It is therefore an excellent starting point that we hope will be supported consistently through the publication of events, characters and missions that keep users interested in the long term.

Honkai Star Rail is yet another surprising small jewel, proving itself to be so much more than just a "Genshin Impact in space".

All we can say for now is that Honkai: Star Rail is off to a very promising start. We don’t know where the journey of the Astral Express eventually leads us. Genshin Impact’s quality has only gone up in the years since it first launched, and if HoYoverse puts the same love and attention into Honkai: Star Rail, this is an adventure fans of the genre shouldn’t miss.

There is so much in Honkai Star Rail to enjoy. There’s a heavy emphasis on story, puzzles, and turn-based strategy, with so much content that free players will likely have more than enough to do to last months on their way to Trailblazer Level 70. With nearly identical systems to Genshin Impact, gamers that have really taken to the Hoyoverse’s tried and true systems should feel right at home here. New players that have been scared away from Genshin due to the action-combat nature will have no problems investing some time in this free-to-play gem. If you can temper your impulsiveness and only spend what makes sense to you, and not dive into the dangerous gacha rabbit hole, Honkai Star Rail will be the ride you never want to stop.

Honkai: Star Rail is just that – a beautiful and highly appealing game to be played while waiting in line or while commuting. And there’s certainly something romantic about escaping your own boring train ride in exchange for the Astral Express, voyaging through the stars, planets and the great unknown.