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Honkai: Star Rail takes up the cherished tradition that Mass Effect and other space-faring games pioneered. As a member of the Trailblazers, players are teased of countless worlds with alien creatures, cultures, and geography. Theyre teased of civilizations in various life stages, as seen in the almost desolate Jarilo-VI, and the Xianzhou Alliances roaming planets on their flagships.

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Players know for a fact that other, more unusual worlds and species exist because of in-game lore. Memory Bubbles are chief sources of these extraterrestrial realities and exposition on known concepts. Each Memory Bubble has a twist to it that makes even the most relatable setting a neat piece of speculative work.

Who knows what Pompom is? Is the Immortal in a Vase just a soul or a shapeshifter? In Honkai: Star Rail, strange creatures populate the universe and even the players party.

AI supercomputer Pronto Expert System & Mecha No. 16 are advanced machine lifeforms presented in Memory Bubbles. Both are shown to have very human reactions to uncomfortable scenarios, despite either being completely or partially artificial.

Pronto has advanced senses that made a run-of-the-mill press conference a sensory overload. Because their team is wary and nervous about its capabilities as an advanced AI, it understood that it needed to mask its reaction to appear normal and, above all, loyal.

Mecha No. 16 was also overwhelmed, although in a different manner. Its deliberately made unclear if the being inhabiting No. 16 is a sapient being or a partner AI, or if they can move their own body or are entirely reliant on Leah. Aside from its Sapphic undertones, No. 16s story is interesting for its implications on artificial sapience, mind transference, and what stars are in this universe.

These Bubbles introduce terrifying creatures that can wipe out civilizations and entire worlds. Not only are they incapable of understanding sapient beings and morality, but they are also driven solely by their hunger or biological drive.

Both the world-eating youngest member of the Amoeba Slime Mold tribe and the humanoid fungi that evaporates all life operates on instinct. And yet the humanoid fungi have some form of reason, as they worship an unnamed god likely to be Oroboros, the Aeon of Voracity. The Fluffies share this capacity for base reasoning as they could disguise their bloodlust to lure victims in.

Aeons or God of the Stars are mortal beings elevated into immortality and near omnipotence. They do not adhere to human perceptions of morality. Instead, they act and judge according to their ideals.

These ideals are embodied by The Paths or wellspring of Imaginary energy bound by an Aeons principles which, in turn, confine Aeons to it. The same beliefs bind an Aeons followers as well, oftentimes to a fanatical, destructive fervor.

The researcher who led a rebellion against a society inspired by the Aeon of Beauty, Idrila, was subject to this fanaticism. Idrila or Anne Durays principles drove Harlow-VIs citizens to murderous devotion even after her disappearance. Its similar to the living legacy left by the dead Aeon of The Propagation, Tayzzyronth.

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Except in Tayzzyronths case, his Swarm actively carries out their will of self-duplication and propagation at the cost of wanton destruction and consumption. Theres no leeway in The Path of Propagation, unlike The Path of Beauty.

Whereas Harlow-VIs citizens aim to preserve what they believe of Idrila, the Mirror Holders aim to revive the Aeon of Beauty. They do so by finding her fragments or mirrors, which they hope to reunite. These mirrors reflect what one believes is beautiful, as seen when a being from a primitive civilization beholds one fragment.

Honkai logs, books, and characters reference historical events frequently. These Memories are not direct accounts, but they tell of encounters that occurred at the height of these events.

One tells of a royal family sundered by followers of the Aeon of Destruction Nanook and the other Emperor Rubert I, whose actions indirectly caused the ascension of Nanook. The Destruction is the first Path the player character has access to, while the being that led a rebellion against Rubert I, Screwllum, is a lead developer of the Simulated Universe.

Compared to the previous two Bubbles, these are light-hearted. Even the political intrigue and espionage of Family have lower stakes than the others. Pure Faith and Family offer glimpses of how the followers of Aeon of Finality Terminus and Aeon of Harmony Xipe operate. The latter is a little more interesting, as the Astral Express was supposed to dock at a world inhabited by Xipes followers before redirecting to the Xianzhou Luofu.

One of Honkai: Star Rails strongest aspects is its world-building. Near-incomprehensible geographies and events play with whats familiar to make Star Rails universe feel more lived in and feel like its scale.

Calcification and The Atonement show the consequences borne by intergalactic travelers ignoring warnings for their discoveries. In terms of settings, they establish worlds in which ancient horrors remain alive and lethal.

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Alive and lethal are also apt descriptions for the creature in which Digestion takes place. Having an industrial civilization spring forth inside a giant mammal is an exciting prospect. If the second world players have access to is on a spaceship, then its not implausible to have the next world inside a gigantic creature.

All three Bubbles depict aliens in alien worlds in everyday scenarios. They do important work in depicting alien worlds and beings as having normal, everyday lives. Not every setting or world needs to be elevated, and moments contribute a lot to world-building.

New Londinium also appears to be a cosmopolitan city with a good mix of alien races with an Interastral Peace Corporation presence. Meanwhile, Voyeurisms world of synthetics appears to have a vastly different structure than a world for organics. With no definite road map, its not inconceivable for Honkai to dip into worlds with non-humanoid aliens like these.

Splendid Planet takes place after a civilization-wiping disaster, while Unable to Communicate occurs before one. Players are walked through how intelligent life was and would be, destroyed in a darkly comedic manner.

Splendid is more of a bottle episode that carries Honkais modern fantasy tone. Its unsettling, mixes small events with grander concepts, and ends with a twist. Communicate delivers on the small moments that answer unasked questions about the IPC, and how it interacts with astral citizens.

Honkai: Star Rail is available for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, iOS, and Android.

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Honkai: Star Rail: Aeons, Worlds, & Creatures In Memory Bubbles - GameRant