With the release of Zenless Zone Zero, AAA anime gaming fans have a ridiculous amount of options with HoYoverse gacha gaming goodness. And they’re all free to play!
But just because they’re free, doesn’t mean we have time (or money) to play them all.
How do the most recent HoYoverse games differ, and which is right for you?
First, let’s go over the similarities between Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail, and Zenless Zone Zero.
All three games are live service gacha games, available on PC, PlayStation, and mobile platforms. They’re designed to be played regularly over a long time, with major content releases, and a constant drip-feed of tantalizing new characters.
A “gacha game” is where players cannot purchase the characters or items they want directly. Instead, players earn (and/or purchase) “pulls,” from standard and rotating banners (like a slot machine mixed with a vending machine, or gachapon).
Each banner has a different assortment of characters and equipment available. It preys on FOMO (fear of missing out) with limited banners that feature rare characters only available for a certain length of time.
The gacha system has been compared to loot boxes, and both systems are a form of digital gambling, since the currency used for pulls can be purchased with real money.
HoYoverse games are also recognizable by their colorful, high-quality anime art style, animations, and voice acting. All three games can trace their roots back to HoYoverse’ Honkai Impact 3rd, which came to the US in 2018.
The games feature high production values, comparable to full-priced JRPGs. All are available to play on mobile platforms, though some play better on PC and consoles due to their active battle systems.
All three games allow the player to choose between a male or female main character, and all are rated T for Teen. Click the links above or below for our full ratings breakdown in our Game Picker database.
Genshin Impact
Released: September 2020
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and mobile devices (Android, iOS)
While not their first attempt at a live service gacha game, Genshin Impact certainly blew away all expectations of what a free-to-play game could do, raking in billions of dollars since release, and cementing MiHoYo (HoYoverse) as the premiere developer within the genre.
Genshin Impact is an open-world RPG, clearly inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Taking on the role of the mysterious Traveler, players are new arrivals to the fantasy world of Teyvat. The world is divided into several nations, with each nation represented by a different element.
Players are free to explore the large world, battling groups of enemies, gathering resources and treasure, jumping into dungeons, and completing side quests and daily tasks.
Unlike many open-world RPGs, players form a party of four playable characters from their every-growing roster. One character is controlled at a time, but players can seamlessly swap between party members with the press of a button. Swapping between characters is critical to maximizing power, as characters can combo off each other’s elemental powers, creating explosions, freezing effects, or electrical bursts.
At launch, Genshin featured two regions. In the four years since, HoYoverse has added four additional regions, with each region adding a huge amount of explorable area, quests, storylines, and characters.
Genshin is also the only game in this list to feature true co-op multiplayer, allowing up to four players to join each other’s worlds (the world is still limited to four total characters, however). Players must progress through the game and reach a certain Adventure Rank (account level) before they can access multiplayer.
For fans of: Open-world exploration, modern Zelda games, co-op multiplayer, fantasy
Honkai Star Rail
Released: October 2023
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, and mobile devices (Android, iOS)
Despite Genshin’s huge, ahem, impact on mobile gaming and the gacha genre, their next game was far from a sci-fi reskin. Honkai Star Rail maintains the high-quality anime look, but drastically changes the gameplay into a more traditional JRPG, with turn-based combat and linear zones.
The main character, known as the Trailblazer, is awakened aboard a space station by a mysterious group, and soon joins forces with the crew of the Astral Express, who explore the galaxy aboard an intergalactic train.
Honkai Star Rail is not an open-world RPG. The space stations and planets are depicted as linear zones or town hubs with interactive elements.
Combat is much more familiar to fans of traditional JRPGs, with party members and enemies taking turns unleashing abilities. Players can gain extra turns when unleashing ultimate abilities, which interrupt the normal turn order. Knowing which characters to take into which battles to exploit elemental weaknesses is key.
Thanks to its turn-based combat, Star Rail is the only game on this list to feature auto-combat, and it’s by far the most mobile-friendly game.
For fans of: Turn-based combat, JRPGs, sci-fi, mobile games
Zenless Zone Zero
Released: July 2024
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, and mobile devices (Android, iOS)
Zenless Zone Zero is the new hotness in town. Once again HoYoverse is not content to simply reskin old games. If Genshin Impact is inspired by Breath of the Wild, then Zenless Zone Zero oozes the cool style of Persona.
ZZZ is an urban (or modern-ish) RPG. It’s set in a post-apocalyptic world where a single city remains, after an invasion from interdimensional monsters.
Players play as either Belle or Wise, the first fully voiced and fleshed out protagonists in a HoYoverse gacha RPG. Unlike the other games, the main character acts as a Proxy, leading other characters through the dangerous Hollow outside the city.
Like Persona, players are free to walk around New Eridu and its various hubs and shops, acquiring quests, gathering collectibles, and playing minigames. The game uses its own day-night cycle, with some quests and activities only available at certain times.
The meat of the gameplay stems from exploring the Hollows outside, which are abstracted as weird top-down, 2D maps of TV screens, with their own little puzzles and encounters. These become the dungeon crawls of ZZZ, while combat encounters are pure third-person action.
The combat in ZZZ is all about quick parries and reactions, smooth combos, and putting the right trio of characters together to maximize their synergy and effectiveness (unlike the other games, players form teams of three instead of four — but the main character is not a party member).
Due to its fast-paced, combo-driven combat, Zenless Zone Zero can be awkward to play on the mobile platform.
For fans of: Persona, urban RPGs, third-person action, The Matrix
The Verdict
All three of HoYoverse’s most recent games are technically sound and visually impressive. If you don’t like the idea of collecting random characters (and probably missing out on the rarest ones), and grinding over a long period of time, however, then none of these HoYoverse gacha games are right for you.
But if you’re still on board, we’ve made it easy to identify your preferences.
Do you like gigantic open world RPGs in a fantasy setting? Play Genshin Impact.
Do you prefer old school turn-based combat with sci-fi flavor? Play Honkai Star Rail.
Do you enjoy stylish modern worlds with combo-driven real time combat? Play Zenless Zone Zero.
