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Does Honkai Star Rail have multiplayer? Here’s what it offers

honkai star rail art

Honkai Star Rail is a great single-player experience, but does it have multiplayer or any kind of co-op option?

Fans of the Honkai series stuck with miHoYo well before the Genshin Impact explosion, and the studio hasn’t forgotten them. Though the company could have sat on its laurels with Genshin Impact, it still launched a sequel to Honkai Impact 3rd. The sci-fi setting and spacefaring saga remain a hit with fans, even though Genshin stands atop the gacha game genre.

However, one feature newcomers wonder about is its multiplayer. Genshin Impact features a fully-fledged co-op mode once a player has achieved a certain rank. Playing with friends is one part of Genshin Impact’s success compared to most single-player gacha affairs. Honkai Star Rail offers a slightly complicated answer.

Does Honkai Star Rail have multiplayer?

Honkai Star Rail does not have a traditional multiplayer mode.

honkai star rail art

Unfortunately for players, Honkai Star Rail does not support a classic co-op mode. Unlike Genshin Impact, which lets players complete certain quests together, Honkai Star Rail offers no way for two people to play in the same world simultaneously.

miHoYo has also not given fans any news about a potential multiplayer mode. Given the lack of a co-op mode in Honkai Impact 3rd, many fans believe the same will hold for Honkai Star Rail. Even so,  there’s no shortage of turn-based multiplayer games on the market, so some fans hold out hope. However, that doesn’t mean Honkai Star Rail lacks multiplayer features.

How to use Honkai Star Rail support characters

Honkai Star Rail has a system that allows players to share support characters with other players.

In essence, the support system allows players to “borrow” characters from other players. Here’s how to set a support character in Honkai Star Rail: 

  • Open the character menu and click on the three dots next to the player’s name
  • Open the Pathfinder Profile and click on “Support Character”
  • Set a character as a new support character or to replace an existing one

Now, players can borrow each other’s characters. Notably, owners of support characters will passively gain credits from the borrower’s gameplay. For those who want to borrow characters instead of lending, here’s how to use support characters from other players in Honkai Star Rail:

  • Find an activity that requires Trailblaze Power
  • Click on the support button located on the fourth-party slot
  • Pick a support character from another player

These support modes also let players try out characters they may not own. Although not every scenario allows players to use support characters, it’s a great way to experience other playstyles. It’s also the closest the game gets to co-op, even if it’s a far cry from a proper multiplayer experience.

Written by Gab Hernandez X Twitter Logo

Gab Hernandez has a particular love for video games that give players control over the narrative direction, such as Divinity: Original Sin 2 and Disco Elysium. Gab spends just as much time playing games as they do gushing about them online to anyone who will listen. Their work has also been seen on TheGamer, Gfinity, and Wargamer, and you can follow them on Twitter / X at @HardlyWorkinGab.

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