HoYoverse is the gaming giant behind some of today’s most popular gacha titles, including Honkai Impact, Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, and Zenless Zone Zero. Each time one of their games marks an anniversary, the company hosts spectacular events for fans to celebrate the journey they’ve experienced as the main characters of the games.
We had the privilege of enjoying the Genshin Impact concerts for two consecutive years when the tour made its way to Malaysia. While Honkai: Star Rail has yet to embark on a global concert tour of its own, fans were treated to a special screening of the Shanghai show at TGV Sunway Velocity Mall — and it was truly a night to remember.
Trailblazers (Honkai: Star Rail fans) flooded the TGV lobby, waiting for the cinema hall to open its doors to watch the special screening of the “Star Rail LIVE 2025” Concert. Once everyone had taken their seats, anticipation filled the room as we waited for the lights to dim and the show to begin. Meanwhile, fans in Shanghai erupted into cheers the moment the conductor appeared on stage and led the orchestra in performing the game’s opening theme, “Star Rail”, instantly transporting us back to the moment we first logged in to begin our trailblazing journey.
After bowing to the audience, the conductor introduced a very special guest for the next track, “Geniuses in the Universe”, and it was none other than The Herta herself. A special animation of the character was projected onto the big screens, and halfway through the piece, fans were surprised to discover it was more than just a visual segment. In typical Herta fashion, she interrupted the performance to express her dissatisfaction with the conductor and promptly had him removed from the stage by security after firing him on the spot. She then continued the show, delivering a performance the audience wouldn’t soon forget.
If the crowd wasn’t already hyped, the next performance featuring guest vocalist Reol truly brought the energy. The original singer for the song “No Dazzle, No Break”, the theme song for the character Rappa, had everyone cheering with excitement. Even in the cinema, the audience couldn’t help but move to the electrifying beat (we certainly did). One of our favourite moments from the concert came during the performance of “Roses and Revolvers”. At first, it appeared to be a solo violin piece for the Knight of Beauty, Argenti, but it quickly turned into a musical showdown when an electric guitarist, dressed in a cowboy outfit, stormed the stage, channelling the cyborg Galaxy Ranger, Boothill. If Guns & Roses had another meaning, this duet was certainly it.
The concert continued with powerful performances of “Dramatic Irony” (Kafka’s theme) and “A Glimmer in the Embers”, from the animated short “The Embers of Glamoth”, featuring the character Firefly. The energy rose once again as the Memetic Entity, Clockie, appeared on screen to introduce the iconic theme for the Planet of Festivities, Penacony: “White Night”, featuring guest vocalist Deng! Each performance during the concert was accompanied by stunning visuals of beloved characters and iconic in-game cutscenes, transporting us back in time as if we were reliving those moments for the very first time.
Other standout moments from the Shanghai screening included the appearance of Filipina singer Chevy, the singing voice of Robin, who took the stage to perform the empowering “Hope Is the Thing With Feathers” and the heartfelt ballad “Had I Not Seen the Sun”. Her powerful vocal projection and refined technique proved she was the perfect choice to bring Robin’s songs to life. Another surprise guest who appeared on stage was Owlbert, the game’s beloved livestream host, to introduce the next duet performance by Yukari and Juan for “Sword Upon Snow”. If you thought that the concert was just going to feature songs from the official game soundtrack, then you thought wrong. A popular fan song managed to make it to the setlist, and that was the viral “Dr. Ratio’s Metaphysics of Bathing”, performed by Japanese masked singer Chogakusei.
There were simply too many breathtaking moments during the concert to fully summarise, but a few highlights deserve special mention. The mesmerising dance performance during “Fugue” left us spellbound, as did the fan-favourite “Samudrartha” — from the Imbibitor Lunae cutscene — performed by guest vocalist Yusuf. The concert also featured several stunning tracks from the Eternal Land, Amphoreus, including “The Glory of Cremnos” (Mydei’s theme), “Children Know Nothing” (Tribbie’s theme), and “Epitaph” (Castorice’s theme).
And just when we thought things couldn’t get any better, cute aggression kicked in as our favourite Express conductor, Pom-Pom, appeared on stage to take us back to the start of our journey. They introduced the next performer, Jonathan Steingard — the artist behind “Wildfire”, the boss theme from the epic battle with Cocolia after her corruption by the Stellaron on Jarilo-VI.
Honkai: Star Rail may be only two years old, but a wave of nostalgia swept over fans when Loger Chen performed “Interstellar Journey”, and Anthony Lynch followed with “Take the Journey”, a track that transported us back to the moment we first boarded the Astral Express. Just when we thought the concert had run out of surprises, HoYoverse thrilled fans with a teaser for its upcoming collaboration with the popular anime “Fate/stay night”, introducing new 5-Star characters, Sabre and Archer. The announcement sent fans into a frenzy, with screams echoing through both the concert venue and the cinema hall.
Not only that, but we were also given a first look at HoYoverse’s upcoming game, which features characters from Honkai Impact and Honkai: Star Rail. Overall, the evening was filled with stunning visuals, incredible performances, and exciting surprises. Even though we experienced the concert through the big screen here in Malaysia, it still felt as if we were right there in Shanghai with fellow fans, sharing in the spectacular event together.
If you didn’t manage to watch the actual concert in Shanghai or the special screening at TGV Cinemas, not to worry. The full “Star Rail LIVE 2025” concert has now been uploaded onto the official Honkai: Star Rail YouTube channel, so grab a seat and lightsticks and enjoy the show!
