It’s not fine literature, but there’s something oddly comforting about the sheer volume and incomprehensibility of it all. Listening to your party witter on about the hugely convoluted plot point almost evokes an ASMR sensation, with conversations about god knows what going on so long you can barely believe someone went to the trouble of writing all that nonsense. It’s a strange choice, but the net effect is almost hypnotic. In common with Genhsin Impact there’s exposition all over the place, from odd little asides with non-player characters, to a plot that’s often utterly impenetrable for its weird complexity and references to names and organisations that you’ve either never heard before or are so dimply aware of that they’re effectively unknown to you.

Then there’s the dialogue, of which there is a near obscene amount. Provided you’re not facing tough opposition, auto-battle makes light work of those moments, but against more powerful foes it’s almost always worth doing your own fighting. Naturally, that grind helps levelling and stat growth, but it also supplies a steady flow of fights that can feel pretty same-y. It's just as well fighting feels good, because random battles are as much Honkai’s stock-in-trade as they were in early Japanese role-players.

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