HoYoverse’s hit space-faring RPG Honkai: Star Rail is all about the Trailblazer, an intergalactic explorer who travels from planet-to-planet solving problems and kicking ass. With the release of update v2.0, the ever-industrious developer will add an entire new location to the game, named Penacony. This former penitentiary turned exotic cosmic hotel will serve as the backdrop for the main story – and introduce several new characters along the way.

The environment itself is a lush, BioShock-esque retro hotel, with a dream-like aspect that will allow you to walk on walls and solve perspective puzzles. As with the other three main locations already in the game, there’ll be tons of puzzles to solve and side-quests to complete. The developer says this will be its largest story yet, and the plot will span multiple updates, including v2.1 and v2.2. In other words, you’re going to be spending the next three or four months here.

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“After pioneering various worlds such as the Herta Space Station, Jarilo-VI, and Xianzhou Luofu, the Crew has received an invitation in the name of The Family to visit Penacony as honoured guests for a grand event called the Charmony Festival,” the blurb explains. “Once entering the hotel, Trailblazers will utilise Dreampool, a unique sleep device to visit the Dreamscapes.”

Three new playable characters will debut as part of the update, including Black Swan, the mysterious five-star Nihility subscriber. “When Black Swan uses Basic ATKs or Skills to attack enemies in combat, there is a certain probability of applying a special stackable DoT effect called Arcana to the enemies. Under the Arcana state, Black Swan triggers additional effects based on the number of Arcana stacks the target is under. Moreover, as the stacks accumulate, the DoT inflicted on the enemy will correspondingly increase.”

Black Swan will headline the first half of the update, and will be followed by five-star Erudition follower Sparkle. “In battles, Sparkle’s presence will provide an additional increase to the team’s maximum Skill Point. Moreover, her unique Skill not only boosts the CRIT DMG of a designated teammate but also Advance Forwards that teammate’s Action, providing more strategic options in battle. After Sparkle unleashes her Ultimate, she can restore multiple Skill Points for the team in one go.” If that’s not enough, Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae and Jing Yuan will also get reruns during the update.

And, if you’re looking for a new four-star, porter Misha will make his debut. “In combat, the more Skill Points the team uses in battle, the more DMG Misha’s Ultimate will inflict. Additionally, when Misha uses his Ultimate, there is a chance to Freeze the target, making him a reliable companion worth entrusting.”

With so many cool new characters to pull for, HoYoverse is giving away a whopping 20 free Star Rail Special Passes in v2.0, which should help you work your way towards your pity. It’s also plotting a variety of in-game events throughout the update, some of which involve mascot character Clockie, who will be getting his own spin-off cartoon episode in the coming weeks. Are you looking forward to arriving on Penacony? Let us know in the comments section below.

[source youtube.com, via youtube.com]