Hey everyone, it’s only been a little over a month since we last spoke, but we figured the world could use some love right now. Plus, it’s been a scorching summer, so we thought you might wanna chill-out and vibe with us in VR via our most-massive free content update EVER, The Heartbreaker Trilogy. It’s available now for PC VR and Oculus Quest and is coming soon to PlayStation VR.
Jam-packed with new scenes, modifiers, gun models and wraps, achievements, improvements, and more. It’s a chilled-out departure from the norm meant to act as an upbeat respite to rock out and relax before what’s in store.
Hot on the heels of an electric PlayStation VR launch
This content update is coming less than a month after our PlayStation VR launch, which was met with player enthusiasm and critical acclaim alike. At the time of writing this, Pistol Whip holds the second-place spot in Metascore for top PlayStation 4 New Releases on Metacritic with a rating of 89. With the next VR entry being Ironman VR coming in at rank 34, this also makes Pistol Whip the highest-rated PS VR new release by a pretty significant margin. Awesome stuff.
“Beyond satisfying, bordering on mystical.” PlayStation Universe
“Pistol Whip is likely to be the PlayStation VR game of the year.” PlayStation LifeStyle
New Scenes, New Vibe
Following a five-part season of face-melting music forged for fighters, this update is a mellow palette cleanser aimed at all the lovers. The first-ever multi-scene pack includes three new scenes featuring artists from repeat label Kannibalen Records and a first-time appearance from label, Seeking Blue. They represent an all-new chilled-out, colourful, and highly-musical take on classic heart-pumping Pistol Whip action.
I sat down with Environment Artist Sarah Roland to talk about where she drew her inspiration from when building out the new scenes. With nearly a decade of experience in the field and a lifetime of experience as an artist, Sarah brought a fresh perspective and insight to the project, resulting in something truly magical.
“I felt like I was creating something for myself, something that I would love to play,” she remarked when asked what working on the update was like, “it felt almost indulgent, I really just went for it with all I had. I hope people love it as much as I do.”
Letting Go – EMBRZ: After heartbreak shatters her dreams, a young lover undergoes a radical fringe therapy to erase the past. Dance and shoot your way through showers of stars and rain in this upbeat transitional journey above a dreamy pastel cityscape.
For this scene, Sarah drew inspiration from the first stages of surviving heartbreak, when you let go of the past and actively decide to move on. The time it takes to do this varies from person to person but is represented beautifully in the persisting and transitioning sun and moon; a challenging new type of world object introduced this update.
“In our virtual world, things are created and destroyed as you move through them,” Sarah explained, “so one of the most challenging aspects was actually getting a Sun and Moon that would follow you and be visible throughout the entire scene.”
To accomplish this, not only did entirely new shaders need to be created, ingenuity and problem-solving skills had to be implemented in order to stop the new celestial objects from popping in and out of existence due to view distance. One of the solutions employed dual suns, perfectly laid atop one another so that players never notice the destruction of the first.
Embers – Dabin feat. Jill Harris: Caught in the fire between passion and vengeance, the lines of dreams and reality are crossed for the lover as she confronts her subconscious. Angelic vocals help players groove and vibe through this warm, colourful, and abstract scene. Embers represents resolve and initiative. Sarah envisioned a venue, packed with people, a place you would go to pursue new passion or rekindle a lost flame.
“I imagined Embers as the memory or the dream of where you went when you finally decided to put yourself out there again, whatever that place looks like for you.”
Another Day – Dabin x Inukshuk (feat. Nevve): As the final procedure, the lover defends her dreams from careless intruders along the road to closure. Experience the explosive and joyous conclusion to Heartbreaker in a fantastical journey across the road less traveled. Another Day represents moving on from heartbreak, towards a future you create. Whether that’s done with a new love, or alone, is entirely up to player interpretation.
But wait, there’s more
The vibe isn’t the only new content Heartbreaker serves up, it’s packed with new modifiers, achievements, and more.
Calling all high score chasers: We’ve upped the bar on point potential with two new modifiers: Vengeance and Disorder. With Vengeance enabled, enemies are even more ruthless, shooting back every time players land a shot. Disorder, on the other hand, shuffles enemy armor types around, ensuring even seasoned veterans must improvise to survive. Vengeance will add 10% to total score, Disorder 5%, and Dual Wield now has a 0% score modifier and will no longer negatively affect scores.
Achievements are here! Twenty-four brand-spankin’ new achievements make their debut for you to unlock.
New guns, new skins, and new effects. Say hello to the new Summer Soaker collection featuring three new models (Bubble Blaster, Mega Douser, & Dollar Drencher) along with a squirt-filled shooting visual effect, all making a splash in your gun case this update.
A new Heartbreaker-themed wrap joins the collection along with a sweet new synth gun sound effect that really shakes things up for the Heartbreaker scenes. Try it out!
Playspace rotation is here!
We hope you are looking forward to trying out all the new content in our biggest update ever, and can’t wait to hear what you think about the new vibe. Be sure to let us know on Twitter @CloudheadGames & @PistolWhipVR, or join the Discord to chat with the team and to stay up-to-date on all the latest news.
Love,
Cloudhead Games
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