Highlights

  • Honkai: Star Rail's success doesn't mean Genshin Impact is going to fail, as both games have unique strengths and player bases.
  • Revenue charts show a tight competition between the two games, with Star Rail seeing a recent boost in earnings due to Acheron's debut in Honkai: Star Rail. The roles will likely reverse in April when Arlecchino comes to Genshin Impact.
  • Genshin Impact's distinct setting and loyal player base secure its status as a top game, even amid Star Rail's success.

Every developer has a flagship that its identity is closely tied to, and in the case of HoYoverse, it's indisputably been Genshin Impact since it burst onto the action role-playing scene in late 2020. A stream of consistent updates has followed in the time since, expanding the lore of Teyvat and building a vast network of faithful fans due in no small part to its eye-catching character designs and smooth combat mechanics. However, there comes a time when a flagship's success is rivaled by another title from the same developer. With the emergence of Honkai: Star Rail, HoYoverse finds itself in an enviable situation with two high-revenue games in the same genre, and despite Honkai's recent impressive numbers, Genshin Impact shouldn't worry too much about its sister title's success.

Titles in the same genre usually battle for gamers' attention, and revenue numbers can reliably tell what game has a stranglehold on the market. It's a rare feat that the same developer produces multiple titles that compete among themselves at the top of the pile. Rockstar faced this problem with its Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption mega franchises, but the developer has mitigated the level of competition between its role-playing entries by spacing out release dates. With HoYoverse concurrently running Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail - both of which rely on maintaining a large player base - it seems Star Rail's recent numbers could spell trouble for Genshin Impact. However, given their player base similarities and unique focuses, Genshin Impact's bubble shouldn't pop just yet.

Zenless Zone Zero characters on a Genshin Impact background.
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Honkai: Star Rail's Success Doesn't Mean Genshin Impact's Failure

Some games take the world by storm, hitting the ground running with such force that they garner a massive player base in relatively little time. Palworld has been 2024's golden child in this respect, gaining popularity with each passing day, and 2023 saw a similar title in Honkai: Star Rail.

Honkai: Star Rail's Revenue Figures are Getting a Boost

Some might have considered Genshin Impact to be a lightning-in-a-bottle moment for HoYoverse, but Honkai: Star Rail's stellar performance, culminating in the Best Mobile Game win at The Game Awards 2023, has cemented the developer's position as a big player in the industry.

On the surface, Star Rail's dominance can be interpreted as ominous writing on the wall for lovers of Genshin Impact, since both titles operate in the same space. A quick look at mobile game revenue charts from Sensor Tower shows a tightly contested $92.8 million for Genshin Impact compared to $92.5 million for Honkai: Star Rail in February, before the latter completely outstripped Genshin Impact with a staggering $145 million in March. Acheron's introduction on March 20 was the orchestrating factor behind this sudden uptick in Star Rail's revenue, but it doesn't signal an incoming downtrend in Genshin Impact's earning potential.

Genshin Impact's Similar Player Base and Unique Premise Make its Success Independent

The revenue of both titles largely depends on banner sales, and Genshin Impact's corresponding lull can be attributed to the high anticipation for Acheron's entry into Star Rail's meta. By all accounts, April's numbers should indicate a reversal of the trend in Genshin Impact's favor given the fanfare that should accompany the introduction of Arlecchino as a playable character in Genshin Impact 4.6 Update. Aside from the see-saw revenue relationship, even in the scenario where Star Rail consistently outperforms Genshin Impact, its distinct Earth-like fantasy setting combined with the crossover between both player bases indicates the HoYoverse flagship should retain its status as a top dog.

For a game of Genshin Impact's status to be in peril, there would have to be a considerable dip in the number of gamers actively playing. Ordinarily, Honkai: Star Rail's rise would spell doom in this regard, but a large chunk of its players also spend their fair share of time exploring and finding clues to unsolved mysteries in Genshin Impact. Teyvat's fantasy spin on Earth also contrasts Star Rail's planet-scale premise, so both games have unique experiences to offer gamers. With a distinct setting and a secure player base, which is kept in a never-ending stream of entertainment through Genshin Impact's famed six-week update schedule, the title is in no danger of falling off the mountaintop for the foreseeable future.