Honkai Star Rail to get demo for Standard 5-stars, 'Eye Comfort' mode in 1.2

With the release of Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2 on Wednesday (19 July), the game is getting even more quality-of-life changes that are sure to make Genshin Impact fans seethe with jealousy.

In the latest ‘Voice of the Galaxy - Update Radio’ blog post, Honkai: Star Rail developer HoYoverse revealed that they will be adding a new trial mode for the Standard Warp 5-star characters and an ‘Eye Comfort’ mode, among other quality-of-life changes, in version 1.2.

The highlight of the upcoming changes is no doubt the new ‘Joint Forces’ stages, which will let players try out the game’s seven Standard Warp 5-star characters: Himeko (Fire, Erudition), Welt Yang (Imaginary, Nihility), Gepard (Ice, Preservation), Clara (Physical, Destruction), Yanqing (Ice, Hunt), and Bailu (Lightning, Abundance).

The Joint Forces stages will be a permanent mode and also works just like the ‘Aptitude Showcase’ events, which rewards players with Stellar Jade, Adventure Logs, and Universal Enhancement Materials after completing the trial.

This new trial mode for Honkai: Star Rail’s Standard 5-stars will be especially useful when players reach the 300-pull mark in the Standard Warp and can get a Standard 5-star character of their choice for free.

Genshin Impact fans are sure to be salty about this addition (I know I am), as the game does not have a trial mode for its Standard 5-stars, nor the option to get one for free after a certain number of pulls. HoYoverse can you throw Genshin players a bone, please?

Another major quality-of-life change coming in Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2 is the new ‘Eye Comfort’ mode, which tones down the particle effects of certain character abilities like Seele’s ultimate so as to not strain the player’s eyes.

Genshin also has its fair share of eye-straining abilities, like Keqing’s burst, so I hope HoYoverse gives it something similar to help players with certain eye conditions.

Aside from the major quality-of-life changes listed above, Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2 will also bring customisable message and chat boxes as well as optimisations to the battle information display, Warring Expedition UI, and the ‘Planar Fissure’ event.

If it wasn’t already obvious, I’m both happy about all the new quality-of-life changes coming to Honkai: Star Rail and seething that Genshin Impact is being neglected in that department.

While Genshin Impact has been out for over two years now, it still lacks many of the features that Honkai: Star Rail had at launch, including a smoother daily commission and expedition experience as well as an actual, well-written protagonist.

Let's hope that with the release of version 4.0 and the new region of Fontaine, Genshin Impact can finally get the much-needed quality-of-life updates that Honkai: Star Rail regularly get.

Aside from the quality-of-life changes listed above, Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2 will also add tons of new content to the game, including a new weekly boss, new areas in the Xianzhou Luofu, events, and more.

There will be new characters too, chief among them being the 5-star Stellaron Hunter duo of Blade and Kafka. Blade will be the featured 5-star of the first half of version 1.2 while Kafka will take the spotlight in the second half alongside new 4-star character Luka.

After Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2 comes version 1.3, which features new 5-star characters Imbibitor Lunae and Fu Xuan as well as a new 4-star in Lynx Landau. Version 1.3 is expected to come out in mid-August.

Yan Ku is a full-time dog parent, part-time (gacha) gamer, and part-time writer.

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