Honkai Star Rail is another such game. It's a Chinese RPG, although very much in the JRPG style, and is indirectly linked to Genshin Impact and other Hoyoverse games through a kind of multiverse setting. The plot revolves around the hero, a character apparently created to contain a dangerous object called a Stellaron. Following the first missions, set on a giant space station, the hero joins the crew of the Astral Express on its interstellar mission to stop natural disasters caused by other Stellarons.
Like Anachronox and many role playing games, Star Rail involves turn-based combat, with your party of adventurers choosing whether to use their attacks, skills or ultimate moves. As the game goes on you can build up a larger group of characters so you can select which four suit a particular battle. I'm learning which characters work best together and how to activate certain characters' extra attacks or abilities.
It's also ridiculously complex - so far I've found at least six different ways to power-up your characters and develop their abilities.
Characters follow the paths of Aeons (ancient god-like entities) - this acts a bit like a character class in D&D and decides some of their strengths and abilities. It is possible for characters to change path.
You can also power up your characters with individual experience points, Trailblaze experience points (whole team experience), Light Cones (an individual ability boost), Traces (a kind of tech tree for each character that can enhance their different skills and attacks), Relics (basically armour - masks, body armour, boots etc) and Eidolons (possibly recovered memories that, once earned, add to the character's stats). Light Cones and Relics can themselves be upgraded as well. There are also temporary boosts such as food items.
All clear?
Following the missions in the main story arc will bring you into combat against gradually more powerful enemies, but there are also plenty of non-combat missions. I was surprised to find that, having defeated the big enemy in the second major chapter of the story, I was then sent on a series of missions to listen to the new mayor give speeches, visit all of my newfound friends to say goodbye, and take selfies in all the locations I'd visited, before I could progress to the next chapter. Is this normal for computer games now?
There are also more side quests than you can shake a stick at. Characters in the game will call or text you, with conversations that often lead into invitations or errands, while simply exploring the various cities and talking to inhabitants can also lead into missions. There are daily missions and challenges too - it's actually quite overwhelming, but it does give that sense that you are part of a wider world. If you just want to fight monsters, whether to gain experience or materials for crafting, or just for fun, there are several different types of location where you can do this.
As the difficulty of the main story arc gradually increases I am increasingly finding that I have to abandon it, do a whole load of missions, fights, crafting and upgrading before I can return with stronger characters.
Star Rail is fairly child friendly. It's vague about death - fights take place in a kind of combat zone, and monsters often appear to be banished to some other universe rather than killed, while humans and other sentient characters are usually defeated rather than killed, even if they appear to be blown apart in the combat. There's a lot of friendship, but only hints of romance between any of the characters.
The world of Star Rail is large, and it expands as you play - each chapter in the story arc is set in a completely new world or space station, each with its own cities or zones. Most of the time you are free to follow the plot missions or leave them behind, teleport freely between different locations and pursue other missions or activities. Each region is distinctive and there's plenty of interesting places to go.
Many aspects of Star Rail prioritize gameplay over realism. It is a game after all. For example, the ability to teleport anywhere, leave one mission behind and follow another, gives a great sense of freedom, but takes away a sense of urgency for the main story missions. It also means the Astral Express itself isn't required for travel, except at the start of each chapter when it brings you to a new location. You can also bring a line-up of any characters you have recruited into a battle - so they can be different from the characters actually present or involved in the mission. Each character has their own attack style and animations, from regular baseball bats, swords or spears to giant chickens and energy-blasting guitars. This is not hard sci-fi.
Star Rail has several play-to-play aspects. However I have been playing for free, without any in-game purchases, and so far I haven't felt disadvantaged or excluded.
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