Is Honkai Star Rail Open World?

Honkai Star Rail is a new game by Hoyoverse, the same studio that released Honkai impact and Genshin Impact. The turn-based roleplaying game (RPG) is one of the most successful game releases of 2023 and a lot of new players are jumping into the game to give it a try on PC, mobile and PlayStation. If you are wondering if Honkai Star Rail is open-world and what the exploration is like, here’s what you need to know about it.

Honkai Star Rail is not open world

Honkai Star Rail is not a fully linear game and you can move around various locations, but it is not a proper open-world game. There are various locations that you can explore and you can teleport from one region to another but they are not interconnected. 

In terms of exploration, it is very similar to Genshin Impact. You get to find chests, run into random puzzles and challenges, do side quests and more. The scope of exploration is nowhere near as big as Genshin Impact, but the world is lively and the interactions with non-playable characters (NPCs) make the game quite enjoyable even though it is not a true open-world title.

The game is free-to-play with a monetization system that lets you unlock playable characters and light cones (weapons). But the content itself is accessible to anyone and you do not need to make any purchases to experience the story, events and other content.

That being said, it is a “gacha” game which is equivalent to loot boxes in popular titles. Players can easily be swayed by fancy new characters and gear and may fall into the slippery slope of spending large amounts of money on the game. You should spend responsibly and be careful with your in-game purchases.

There is no player-versus-player combat or a leaderboard system, so spending money on the game does not give you a competitive advantage. Players can save up the premium currency (Stellar Jade) to get specific characters. If unlucky, fret not as there is a pity system guaranteeing you drops.