The sci-fi RPG Honkai: Star Rail already features a wide range of playable characters, but leaks from miHoYo, the game’s publisher, suggest the game could see a familiar face from previous games in the Honkai franchise, as well as a number of key updates.
The free-to-play game series has a large following of dedicated fans, and the inclusion of various characters, features, story and lore from previous iterations, including a close relationship with Honkai Impact 3rd has already delighted them.
Fan-favourtie characters like Raiden Mei and Bronya Zaychik have already been recasted for Honkai: Star Rail, being reimagined and tweaked to suit the new game through the characters of Acheron and Silver Wolf.
New characters and storylines have also proven popular, with cast members like Sparkle and Castorice already winning even the most nostalgic fans over nearly instantly.
The game has already collected a large loyal following after the success of miHoYo’s previous game Genshin Impact, and has been nominated for various awards including the Most Wanted Game Award at the Golden Joystick Awards in 2022 and won Best Popularity Award at the World Science Fiction Game Annual Awards in 2023, as well as Best Mobile Game at the Game Awards 2023.
What did the Honkai Star Rail leak show us
According to GameRant, a recent leak shared by a so-called “prominent HoYoverse leaker, Luna” has suggested that a “special character” will be coming with the version 4 update of Honkai Star Rail.
This special character appears to be Yae Sakura, a fan favourite from across the HoYoverse, being featured in Genshin Impact and previous Honkai games.
It is unknown if Yae Sakura will appear in the game as the same character, or as a reimagined new cast member based on the Honkai Impact 3rd version of her character, but whatever her character will bring will be revealed in an update in early 2026.
Other upcoming updates and releases
While players patiently await the new “special character”, MiHoYo are set to release Version 3.3 of Honkai Star Rail, bringing exciting new features in the near future.
The update, launching next week, will introduce two new playable characters: Hyacine and Cipher, who will be Wind Remembrance and Quantum Nihility character types respectively.
The devs have also hinted at further roster expansions in Version 3.4 and beyond, including a long-awaited Fate/Stay Night collaboration.
Where to play Honkai Star Rail
Honkai Star Rail is available as a free to play RPG on PC, PlayStation 5 and mobile, with a PlayStation 4 version set for release at a later date.
