miHoYo Reveals BSide: Olivia Lin, an AI Companion App for Steam
miHoYo, the studio known for titles such as Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, and Zenless Zone Zero, has announced BSide: Olivia Lin, a PC app that blends game-like interaction with an AI companion experience.
Unlike the studio’s familiar action RPG and adventure-style projects, BSide: Olivia Lin focuses on spending time with a virtual pianist through music, conversation, letters, and personal interaction. The app is planned to enter Early Access on Steam within 2026.
Meet Olivia Lin
Olivia Lin, also known as Lin Li, is introduced as a young woman from Shanghai who studies piano as her major and psychology as her minor.
She enjoys vinyl records, classic films, and rainy days. Her personal project focuses on the connection between music and memory, which becomes the emotional center of the app’s experience.
Because of this setup, Olivia is designed not only as a virtual character to watch, but as someone users can talk to, write to, and share creative thoughts with over time.
A Companion App Built Around Music and Conversation
BSide: Olivia Lin is not presented as an action game or RPG. Instead, it is described as an AI companion app that combines music listening, conversation, letter writing, and relationship-building with a virtual character.
Users can spend time with Olivia through different activities, including listening to her music, chatting with her, and sharing their own musical work.
The app also features an animated desktop wallpaper function, allowing Olivia to stay on the user’s PC screen throughout the day. Some music and app functions can also be accessed without opening the full app in full-screen mode.
Write Letters to Olivia
One of the key features highlighted in the source is the ability to write letters to Olivia Lin.
Users can type messages about their thoughts, feelings, or things they want to say at that moment. According to the app’s description, Olivia will read those letters carefully and respond.
This gives the app a more personal direction, focusing less on traditional gameplay systems and more on emotional interaction with a virtual companion.
Share MIDI Music Files
Music is another major part of BSide: Olivia Lin.
Users can listen to Olivia’s performances and experience an atmosphere designed to feel like spending time with a pianist. The app also allows users to upload their own MIDI files.
After uploading a MIDI file, the system can automatically generate a music video that matches the file, turning the user’s musical ideas or small creative inspirations into something they can share with Olivia.
Language and Availability
At the moment, the source states that BSide: Olivia Lin currently supports only Chinese and appears to be available only through Steam China during the initial stage.
There has been no further announcement yet regarding an English version or availability in other regions.
A Different Kind of miHoYo Project
Overall, BSide: Olivia Lin looks like an interesting experiment from miHoYo. Instead of focusing on combat, exploration, or gacha-style progression, this project leans into music, mood, companionship, and everyday interaction with a virtual character.
For players who enjoy AI companion concepts, virtual characters, music-based experiences, or more personal interaction apps, this may be one project to watch in 2026.
THIS IS our take
BSide: Olivia Lin feels like a very different move from miHoYo, but that is exactly what makes it interesting. If the app can make conversations, music, and daily screen presence feel natural instead of gimmicky, it could appeal to players who want something softer, more personal, and more experimental than a traditional game. For SEA users, the biggest thing to watch now is whether miHoYo will eventually confirm wider language and regional availability.
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