In May–June 2025, the fantasy universe of Honkai: Star Rail unexpectedly swept into one of St. Petersburg’s most romantic traditions — the Scarlet Sails graduates’ festival.
Together with Infinix and the IGM team, we set out to give young fans of the game a chance not just to watch the show, but to become part of it.
We blended cosplay, fashion and technology, launching the contest “On the Way to the Stars Under Scarlet Sails.” The final took place at the St. Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design — a place where creativity and style feel right at home. Over a month of the online stage, we had almost 4,000 registered users, 165 entries and close to 9,500 votes cast by viewers for their favorite works.
The offline final drew more than 300 guests, and the total reach of the content created by participants and the jury exceeded 1.3 million views. But most importantly, we proved that even a niche community can become the heart of a major city event when you approach it with soul.
Why Scarlet Sails, and what does cosplay have to do with it?
Scarlet Sails is an iconic celebration for all the youth of St. Petersburg, a symbol of stepping into adulthood. It was here, in an atmosphere of waiting for a miracle, that we decided to hold a cosplay contest inspired by Honkai: Star Rail. We wanted to give fans of the game a chance to truly express themselves: not just to copy a character’s look, but to imagine what that character would wear if they went to school or university. That’s how the concept of two “Pleiades” with separate nominations was born. The main Pleiad — the “Scarlet” one — invited students aged 16 and up, because they are the true heroes of the graduation night. We set ourselves several goals:
- Create a convenient digital hub for accepting submissions and collecting audience votes;
- Find an offline final venue that matched the aesthetic of both the game and fashion;
- Integrate our partner Infinix so that the brand felt organic and created emotions;
- And, of course, give the community an unforgettable celebration.
Stage 1. The website as the heart of the online phase
On May 21, we launched a dedicated contest website. It became a full-fledged interactive tool. Participants signed in via Telegram — quick, with no extra emails. They uploaded their works, chose a nomination, and viewers could vote for the looks they loved. To keep engagement high, we introduced weekly voting drives: the most active viewers received promo codes for in-game rewards in Honkai: Star Rail via our IGM.GG service. The site ran 24/7, and our moderation team manually checked every submission to keep out low-quality or inappropriate content.
Stage 2. The perfect stage — a fashion university
For the offline final, we needed a venue with character. We chose the St. Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design — and it was a perfect match. First, the university’s focus blended seamlessly with the idea of a costume contest. Second, the university already had the infrastructure for fashion shows and events. We managed to negotiate special rental conditions, and the very fact of holding the final inside a prestigious educational institution added prestige to the event, drawing attention not only from gamers but also from creative students.
Stage 3. Offline final: magic, music and technology
On June 26, the university turned into a portal to the world of Honkai: Star Rail. In the foyer, guests were welcomed by photo zones with popular cosplayers who also served as judges. Partner Infinix set up a demo zone where people could test the latest smartphones and enter prize draws. The program kicked off with a dance show that set the tone for the evening. Then the finalists took the stage — each one had prepared a mini-performance to “defend” their costume. The audience witnessed a genuine fashion show infused with performance art. After the contest segment, the atmosphere was fired up by musicians ItAllCanWait and Gamma BadArt, who performed covers of themes from Honkai: Star Rail. An important part of the evening was the appearance of an Infinix representative, who talked up the advantages of the new smartphone. The climax came with the awarding of the winners and a group photo. The evening wrapped up with an autograph session with the cosplayers and artists — guests went home with gifts, merch and a sea of emotions.
How we wove Infinix into the story
The partner integration ended up feeling natural and unobtrusive. Before the final, we arranged with the cosplayer-judges to create content unboxing Infinix smartphones — those posts spread across social media with massive reach. At the event itself, the Infinix demo zone became a focal point: attendees tested cameras, took cosplay selfies and participated in prize giveaways from the brand. And the representative’s moment on stage highlighted that technology and fantasy can indeed be friends.
Results and key achievements
The “On the Way to the Stars Under Scarlet Sails” project exceeded our expectations. We not only gave fans a chance to unleash their creativity, but we also created an event that got people talking. The reach of publications by the jury and IGM surpassed 880,000 views, while UGC created by participants and attendees themselves racked up over 500,000 more views. The offline final drew over 300 attendees.
But what we’re proudest of is the successful intertwining of an academic atmosphere, gaming aesthetics and modern technology. We managed to show that Honkai: Star Rail lives not just on smartphone screens, but also in the real world — where creativity, fashion and friendship take on new colors. And the partnership with Infinix proved that when a brand shares its audience’s values, its product becomes part of the emotions, not just an ad break.
