HoYoverse is known for its action-packed RPGs like Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, Honkai Impact 3rd, and upcoming game Zenless Zone Zero, but the developer will branch out into a new genre: the slice-of-life simulation game.
The developer has officially filed a trademark for the game ‘星布谷地’ (which roughly translates to Starry Sky Valley), and a Bilibili account has been made for the game. Leaks suggest that it will bear a striking resemblance to Animal Crossing.
Leaker UBatcha teased news of a ‘casual simulation style game’ on X/Twitter back in 2023, and the recent news confirms the leak, as well as the concept images that were leaked back then. Hoyoverse has not officially announced the game yet, but the developer will likely reveal more information sooner than later.
All Hoyoverse games have had a gacha element to date, so it’s possible that Starry Sky Valley could follow suit by having characters who live in the valley available through a gacha pool, or break the trend by being the first game to ditch the gacha.
What this means for Hoyoverse remains to be seen, but if Starry Sky Valley becomes a smash hit, we could see more of such concepts from the developer in the future.