[2][3][4] The series originates with FlyMe2theMoon, a paid mobile game for iOS released in 2011,[5] which was developed by the five-person "miHoYo studio" startup team.
[9] The Honkai series is set in a universe called the “Imaginary Tree” and follows the adventures of characters such as Kiana, Mei, and Bronya.
The series primarily revolves around the theme of "rebellion against the end and saving the world" and features "Honkai" disasters as the core setting.
The Honkai can be spread as energy, through beasts and humans, causing them various symptoms, and can also trigger viruses, natural disasters, world wars, or any other form of damage to civilisation.
[11] Worlds devoured by the Honkai will fall from the Imaginary Tree and enter the Sea of Quanta, becoming "bubble universes" that gradually disappear.
On the other hand, the Sea of Quanta can form "bubble universes" during natural fluctuations, which are unstable and lack complete history, only having fragments of time periods in specific regions.
Mei and Bronya, who first appeared in Houkai Gakuen, formed the trio protagonists with Kiana and are the core characters of the Honkai series.
Honkai Impact 3rd continues the approach of Houkai Gakuen 2 by introducing the main characters of the previous game with new personalities and designs.
In an interview with Den Fami Nico Gamer, Shaoji explains that the concept of "expy" is the most effective way to demonstrate connections within the series.
Through this technique, fans can observe how a single character can explore different possibilities across parallel worlds while each work maintains its own independent identity.
[6][33] On 28 September 2011, miHoYo released FlyMe2theMoon, a paid game priced at 18 Chinese yuan, on the App Store as an independent developer.
The game's story follows Kiana Kaslana, a genius witch, as she travels to the Lunar Ruins to uncover the truth about her past after completing the Mage's brutal trials.
The game's main theme song, Moon Trip, was composed by Yu Jianliu, with lyrics by Lemonjolly and performed by the VOCALOID software Hatsune Miku.
The development was faster than the original due to inheriting a large amount of data, code, and art assets from Houkai Gakuen.
On July 6, Cai Haoyu shared his experience in developing and promoting Houkai Gakuen 2 at the GameLook Open Day in Shanghai.
They developed a physics-based animation system that could simulate different materials using physical calculations, presenting more realistic character movements and destructive scene effects.
[43][39] Honkai Impact 3rd is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where players can take on the role of various Valkyries and fight against enemies using a variety of weapons and skills.
[44] After being released in mainland China for several months, the game was launched in Japan in 22 February 2017, Taiwan in 18 May 2017, Southeast Asia in 1 November 2017, and North America and Europe in 28 March 2018.
[45] On 15 February 2017, miHoYo filed for an initial public offering (IPO) to the China Securities Regulatory Commission when the company was planning to raise over a billion CNY.
The risk is that the company may not be able to continue to launch new products to meet the needs of players or update the content of their games, and they could face the loss of users.
[39] On 19 December, miHoYo submitted an updated prospectus that included Honkai Impact 3 in its revenue, accounting for 98.82% with Houkai Gakuen 2,[46] which did not help much in the situation.
Rather than having each project create independently, the conceptualization, setting, and creation of the entire Honkai series is carried out within a higher-level "IP team.
[58] In an interview with Den Fami Nico Gamer, Shaoji stated that the Honkai series' storylines are built around modern pop culture.
He stated that the theme of the Honkai series is "humanistic care," where through various "anthems of humanity" stories, players can discover the beauty of life and find courage and warmth.
During the development of FlyMe2theMoon, miHoYo discovered CiCi, then a senior student majoring in animation at Guangdong University of Technology, through social media.
The goal is to make all kinds of characters seem "as if they truly live in the game world," in harmony with other materials including the plot and lore bits.
[61] Later, HOYO-MiX recruited composers such as Gong Qi, Wen Chi, and Lin Yifan to create original soundtrack music for all works in the Honkai series.
[63] In an interview by Play magazine, HoYoverse explained the unique challenges encountered in the English localisation of Honkai: Star Rail.
For instance, an in-game achievement paying tribute to a Jay Chou song All the Way North was renamed "Sweet Pom-Pom O'Mine" as a nod to Guns N' Roses.
[69] According to Sensor Tower, the mobile version of Honkai: Star Rail generated over 100 million USD in global revenue within 10 days, with China accounting for 44%, Japan for 22%, and the United States for 12%.