By Rob Leane

Published: Thursday, 28 October 2021 at 12:00 am

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From the creators of Genshin Impact comes Honkai Star Rail, a strategy-based role-playing game with some very eye-catching graphics. But when is the game’s full release date? When is Honkai Star Rail coming out?

That is, indeed, the question! Although the first Honkai Star Rail beta test has begun, the full launch of the game still feels quite far off. So if you want to try the game, you’ll have to try and get involved with the closed beta while it’s still going.

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So when is the Honkai Star Rail release date, and how can you get involved with the beta in the meantime? Find out everything you need to know with this handy guide!

What is Honkai Star Rail?

Honkai Star Rail is the sequel to Honkai Impact, making it the newest instalment in the Honkai series from the developers at miHoYo (the same Chinese company that made the mega-hit Genshin Impact).

The game’s official Twitter account describes it as “an all-new strategy-RPG title in the Honkai series that takes players on a cosmic adventure across the stars.”

When is the Honkai Star Rail release date?

The full Honkai Star Rail release date has not yet been confirmed, but we would be surprised if the final version of the game launched any sooner than mid-to-late 2022. Reddit posts from fans have also predicted a 2023 release, which does sound feasible as well.

After all, the first Honkai Star Rail beta test has only just begun, meaning that there will be lots of testing and tinkering before the full version of the game is completed and ready for human consumption.

Honkai Star Rail beta dates

The first Honkai Star Rail beta began on Wednesday, 27th October 2021. And end date for this closed beta is yet to be confirmed – so if you’re in the beta and playing the game already, make the most of it while you can!

Honkai Star Rail beta download

If you want to get involved in the Honkai Star Rail beta, you’re a little bit late to the party. Before you can download it, you need to register, and the game’s official website is no longer accepting new registrations. We’ll be sure to update this page if that changes, though.

Which consoles and platforms can play Honkai Star Rail?

For now, only two platforms can access Honkai Star Rail – PC and iOS. This means you’ll need a Windows PC, an Apple iPhone or an iPad in order to access the beta.

It has also been confirmed that Honkai Star Rail will come to Android devices at some point, but you won’t find it on the Google Play Store just yet.

At a later date, we would also hope to see Honkai Star Rail on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch, just like Genshin Impact before it, but none of those platforms have been confirmed as of yet.

Can I pre-order Honkai Star Rail?

No, you can’t pre-order Honkai Star Rail yet, and you might never have to. If it follows the path of Genshin Impact’s release, Honkai Star Rail could well be a free download that won’t cost you a penny to get started with. There may well be microtransactions in the game itself, though.

Honkai Star Rail story

From what we’ve seen so far, the Honkai Star Rail story involves colourful characters, interstellar travel and some sort of spacefaring locomotive called the Astral Express (the conductor of which is named Pom-Pom).

“Each star we head towards is the glowing radiance of civilization,” reads the official description of the game’s reveal trailer, which certainly makes it sound like there is some high fantasy sort of sci-fi going on here. Judging by the trailer itself, it looks like your character will be going out on some action-packed expeditions.

Honkai Star Rail characters

Eight characters have been named and described on the Honkai Star Rail website:

• Himeko: “An adventurous scientist who encountered the Astral Express as a child when it got stranded in her home world”
• Welt: “The wise and sophisticated former Anti-Entropy Sovereign […] has saved Earth from annihilation time and time again”
• Danheng: “A cold and reserved young man who wields a spear known as Cloud-Piercer. He acts as the train’s guard”
• March 7th: “A clever, quirky girl […] was found in a piece of drifting eternal ice […] she decided to name herself after the date of [her] salvation”
• Gepard: “An upright and noble captain of the Silvermane Guards who bears the name of the age-old Gepard family”
• Seele: “A spirited and valiant member of Wildfire who grew up in the perilous Underworld of Belobog”
• Clara: “A shy young girl with no home, Clara had no choice but to join the prospectors to survive”
• Asta: “The Lead Researcher of the Space Station brims with enthusiastic curiosity and boasts unimaginable achievement in the field of astronomy”

MiHoYo

Honkai Star Rail gameplay

Also on the game’s website, the core gameplay mechanics of Honkai Star Rail have been described. We’ve been told to expect “thrilling, strategic combat” from this turn-based RPG, as well as dungeon exploration where you will “uncover the Fragmentum’s secrets with your team.”

The mention of a team could imply that there are multiplayer options in the game, but we can’t confirm that as we haven’t been able to play yet. Everyone in the beta is sworn to secrecy, which means details are thin on the ground, but you are starting to see some gameplay footage appear online. Check out the video below, for example.