[GamePea Exclusive, Reproduction Prohibited!] GamePea reports — On the occasion of its third anniversary, miHoYo has gifted Honkai: Star Rail players with a significant surprise. During the April 10 livestream for Version 4.2, titled 'Thus, All Beings Rejoice,' the grand finale revealed a collaboration with Japanese animation studio MAPPA to produce an original anime series. A concept PV titled 'Death in the Afternoon' was also released, clocking in at about three minutes and showcasing the backstory of the Stellaron Hunters and the High-Cloud Quintet. The announcement instantly ignited the global player community.
MAPPA is renowned for hits like Jujutsu Kaisen and Attack on Titan: The Final Season, with a production pedigree widely respected in the anime world. Just last year, MAPPA's theatrical film Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc grossed over $18 million in its North American opening weekend, claiming the top spot and earning global acclaim, further elevating the studio's reputation. On paper, entrusting such a powerhouse with the anime adaptation of a phenomenon like Honkai: Star Rail seems a no-brainer.
Yet, amid the cheers, seasoned players remain cautiously restrained. Their concern isn't about quality — it's a more fundamental question: Will this anime ever actually see the light of day? Recall that in September 2022, miHoYo announced a collaboration with ufotable to create a Genshin Impact anime series, complete with a teaser video that garnered over 6.81 million views on Bilibili alone. Players flooded the comments with phrases like 'witnessing history' and 'leaving my mark.' However, over the following three-plus years, the company went virtually silent on the project. The official 'Genshin Impact Anime Project' account, specifically created by miHoYo, saw little activity, gradually eroding player expectations. The tone shifted from earnest discussion about the anime's content to sarcastic jabs of frustration.
It wasn't until February of this year that ufotable briefly revived the project in a 2026 promotional reel — after three and a half years of radio silence, the 'Genshin Impact Anime Project' reappeared with just a few seconds of new footage. Notably, ufotable labeled it a 'Future project,' signaling that a full release remains distant. The reaction from Chinese players was sharp: 'Three and a half years for 20 frames.' This history has cemented the phrase 'miHoYo anime' as synonymous with 'vaporware' in many players' minds. The Honkai: Star Rail announcement has elicited more of a 'wait and see' attitude than pure celebration.
Of course, from GamePea's perspective, why has the Genshin Impact anime been so delayed? The issue isn't solely with miHoYo or ufotable — it's structural. The production capacity of Japan's top-tier anime studios has been severely oversubscribed from the start. ufotable's situation is emblematic. A media reporter noted that during a 2024 visit to the studio, 90% of staff were still occupied with the Demon Slayer project, leaving little bandwidth for anything else. According to Anime Rave, a leading overseas anime news outlet, ufotable had paused Genshin Impact anime production to focus on Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc and Mahoyo. A studio dedicated to perfection ironically becomes a bottleneck due to its own exacting standards.
MAPPA's circumstances differ. In contrast to ufotable's focused strategy, MAPPA has a reputation for taking on an overwhelming number of projects, releasing new shows almost every season. While this approach amplifies its visibility, it also leads to overextension — animators have previously taken to social media to publicly complain about tight deadlines. On a broader scale, the schedules of Japan's top animation studios are now dominated by multiple major players. Studios like MAPPA, Bones, and Production I.G routinely partner with overseas streaming platforms. Commissions from Netflix, Sony's Crunchyroll/Aniplex, plus flagship IPs from domestic publishers like Kodansha and Shueisha, form the 'baseline' of Japan's anime production capacity. New external clients wanting to cut in line must either pay far above market rates or accept long waits — both of which come with significant costs for any party.
Beyond external capacity constraints, miHoYo's own IP scale inherently complicates the anime adaptation process. The Genshin Impact dilemma is instructive. As a long-running game with character gacha as its primary revenue model, Genshin Impact boasts a vast world and a multitude of characters, all of which continue to expand with each update. Selecting which storyline to adapt for an anime, while satisfying veteran players' nostalgia and lowering the entry barrier for new viewers, is an incredibly delicate balancing act. Honkai: Star Rail faces a similar challenge: after three years of operation, its story spans multiple planets, its character roster is extensive, and it's still being updated. Anime adaptation requires making tough choices about what to include, adapt, and expand — a creative challenge that also tests the IP's core identity. In this context, slow progress after project launch is actually quite expected.
Still, this announcement is not without significance. Compared to the Genshin Impact concept PV release years ago, miHoYo has chosen MAPPA — a studio more adept at multi-tasking and one that has recently produced global blockbusters. This may signal a shift in collaboration model and project management approach. Of course, from a concept PV to a fully aired anime series, there are too many variables. As for whether this anime will ultimately be released on time, the answer may still take a while.
Tags: Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail