# Honkai: Star Rail global launch

> Honkai: Star Rail drew an estimated 12.4 million mobile downloads in April 2023.

- Owner: HoYoverse (miHoYo)
- Kind: Game
- Sector: Gaming
- Seed date: 2023-04-26
- Milestone date: 2023-04-28
- Date basis: Documented milestone; not a measured attention peak.
- Spread Score: 50 (Notable), v1.3
- Mechanics: Challenge, Pairing

## Summary

HoYoverse launched the game on April 26, 2023, alongside a TikTok challenge and paid advertising. AppMagic estimated 12.4 million mobile downloads in April.

## Timeline

- 2023-04-18 — HoYoverse (Open web) — An eight-day countdown invited fans to change profile pictures and banners.
- 2023-04-23 — SocialPeta (App stores) — SocialPeta reported the pre-download topped iPhone free charts in 114 countries and regions.
- 2023-04-25 — HoYoverse (YouTube) — HoYoverse released the Interstellar Journey launch trailer.

The full timeline, metrics and sources are on the case page, or via the Pro API (https://howitspread.com/mcp#api).

Canonical URL: https://howitspread.com/cases/honkai-star-rail-launch-2023

Cite as: How It Spread (2026). “Honkai: Star Rail global launch.” Case HIS-01905. Spread Score v1.3: 50/100. Updated 2026-10-28. https://howitspread.com/id/HIS-01905