Honkai: Star Rail, the next game from Genshin Impact developer HoYoVerse, is out now on PC and mobile platforms (a PlayStation release is expected later this year). Players are already riding the rails of the Astral Express, exploring a brave new universe full of perils, but some might have skipped right over the very first challenge the game presents.
If you got caught on the character select screen (with thanks to Games Radar+), you'll be treated to some sassy commentary from Silver Wolf, the genius hacker of the Stellaron Hunters. Basically, if you take too long to choose between the male and female protagonist, Silver Wolf gives you grief.
"Why are you standing around?" Silver Wolf negs after waiting 30 seconds. "Having second thoughts?"
Wait a full minute at the character select screen and Silver Wolf really starts to tear into you. "You're gonna think for this long? Didn't make up your mind when you got out of bed this morning?"
Your character, even before they've taken a physical form, doesn't take Silver Wolf's crap lying down. "Don't hurry me, Silver Wolf, this is a big decision," they'll say, alongside: "Yeah, we've always been the one taking Stelerons. It's the first time we're giving one out."
In Honkai: Star Rail, you wake up on the cosmos-traveling train called the Astral Express. There you'll meet the Stellaron Hunters, a group searching the galaxy for Stellarons due to their destructive capabilities. It doesn't help that moments before you're awakening a Stellaron was implanted in your chest, with the game's opening moments showing just how terrifying a Stellaron can be.
Which perhaps explains why Silver Wolf is so impatient to get the Astral Express moving. "Come on, I'll pick for you," she says after 90 seconds without choosing a character. "This one, yeah, this one!"
It ultimately doesn't really matter which body you pick. The biggest change in gameplay is the pronouns you hear from other characters, although you'll still sometimes be referred to as the gender-neutral "they." You can also change your name right after selecting, so there's no need to keep the default Stelle or Caelus.
Honkai: Star Rail is well on its way to being bigger than Genshin Impact, judging by the number of pre-registrations prior to launch, and HoYoVerse is trying to keep that momentum with some interesting cross-promotions. One is with the navigation app Waze, which now has a free Astra Express icon and a new voice: March 7th. She's one of the first Stellaron Hunters you meet aboard the Astral Express, and she's got a cute and bubbly voice that'll guide you safely to your destinations, whether they be in the stars or the pizza place down the street.