Painkiller - Anshar Studios

I'm joined by the studio that has bought you the ultimate reimagining of the classic 2004 brutally bloody first-person shooter, Painkiller. We talk about how the concept began and how the development process evolved over time, we also talk nostalgia and what this latest iteration into one of gaming's most beloved IP's has done to recapture original fans of the game.

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Transcript

Simon Hill (Host): 0:03

Hello and welcome to another episode of Gone Gold with me, Simon Hill, esports host, industry presenter, and TV personality. Well, we've made you wait long enough for this episode. We are back and ready to bring you more weekly insights into some of your favourite video game developers and actors that bring to life some of gaming's most iconic characters. Thank you for joining me again. I know we've made you wait for this for a very long time. So for complete transparency, the reason there has been a big gap between the previous episode and this one is due to a few things. Life can change unexpectedly, and occasionally we have to navigate through those difficult periods. I've learned over the years that it's okay to take a step back and give yourself time and space to figure out those tough times in order to build and begin the journey to becoming the best version of yourself again. And I will say this before we continue never be afraid to talk, to open up if you're going through challenging situations in life. It will help more than you can imagine. It has been a tough time. We are on the mend, we're on the right track. And if you yourself have been going through those difficult periods, please don't be afraid to reach out to your nearest and dearest. Back to our regular scheduled programming. This is Gone Gold, and this is a show where we bring you fun, insightful conversations with some of the industry's leading developers and actors. Thank you to everyone for your patience in this next episode, and thank you to everyone who's continued to tune in to the back catalogue. Whether you're listening on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or the many other platforms that this show is available on. Every single listener matters. You, yes, you matter. So be sure to subscribe and download this episode and don't miss our weekly additions. Gone Gold is also available across social media if you didn't already know that. It is on X, TikTok, and Instagram, where you'll find video footage of these interviews exclusively on those platforms. So again, if you want to get that little bit more of a personal insight, head over to Gone Gold Show on X, TikTok, or Instagram. We're all three. Let's get into this episode. You've waited long enough. I'm joined by Anshar Studios, who bought you a reimagined version of the 2004 classic painkiller. We go in depth on the mechanics and what the new version means for the future of the IP. We dive deep into the lore and decision making behind some of the changes to the game and what we can expect in the future. All this and so much more, it's gone gold with Astar Studios. Well, Polish developer Anshar Studios is giving you all of that and so much more in their latest nostalgic thrilling action horror painkiller. I'm joined by creative director Damien Vispanski to delve into the brutality of their latest title. Damien, welcome to the show. Hello. I hope uh uh it's nice to see you basically. It's great to have you here. Congratulations on the release of the new game. It's been quite the journey for yourself and the studio to get to this point. How do you sum up how you're feeling now? The game is finally out into the world.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 3:51

I mean, yeah, we're we're glad we will be able to, you know, provide the game uh out to the players, you know. It was like a great learning experience for us because this is one of the biggest projects that the answer has worked on, you know, from uh basically from the bottom to the top, you know, we all stuff done in-house. We did some support in the past, but yeah, this is the biggest project we we've embarked on, basically.

Simon Hill (Host): 4:17

And the painkiller series was iconic as I was growing up in the early 2000s, it was intense with over-the-top weapons, relentless enemies. You were entrusted on giving this IP a new lease of life, which I can imagine added a lot of pressure to the studio. How did all this begin for you?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 4:37

Yeah, it it was a lot of pressure because you know, uh one thing we that we were approached basically by the Saver Interactive, and the idea was okay, how can we translate the painkiller game into like a co-op space, you know? And this is a challenge, like translating this classic, you can call it boomer shooter basically, you know, last of the one of the last boomer shooters that were there basically, you know, last Hura, uh, into the co-op space to the like the multiplayer title. It is hard, it is challenging. Uh, and yeah, I think we we did manage to do that. The game is out there, you know, it can be played. So, yeah, that was that was like a great experience for us, you know. Great learning experience, you know.

Simon Hill (Host): 5:22

And how did it feel when this project landed on your desk? Were you excited about the prospect of working on such an iconic IP?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 5:30

Yeah, like most of the Polish developers, there's a lot of history uh with painkiller, you know. Uh for a Polish developer, it was one of the first games that was really known outside of Poland, you know, to the wider audience. Uh, I know we have like a Witcher in Poland, you know, but the Painkiller was one of the first, I think maybe even the first game that was really widely known outside of the uh so for any Polish developer, it is a challenge, it is something like of an you know nostalgia trip basically, like all of us played painkiller at some point of our lives. It is really uh well known in Poland, uh, and it is like a staple, you know, here.

Simon Hill (Host): 6:12

The game is fast-paced, it's bloody, it's brutal, it's unforgiving. When you sat down with the team, what were your initial ideas to help push the series forward into this new era?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 6:22

Yeah, and the okay, so the the first thing we were trying to figure out, you know, uh, like I said, uh from the get-go, we knew that it was to be a cop title. It was like the from the in the pitch from the start, basically. And uh thinking about how we can basically uh mix together two uh genres, you know, the co-op shooters that are maybe a little bit more laid back, you know, you have this team compositions and stuff, and then you have like a boomer shooter and also like a movement shooter because of the banner hopping and pink killer, you know, and all that movement you have there. Uh it's completely different dynamic, and it was a challenge, it was something we had to figure out how we can translate this dynamic shooter into a co-op game. Because you know, one of the examples, for example, is that a lot of co-op shooters have those choke points, you know, that you usually fight around, you know, with your team, but with uh such great movement speeds and mobility you have in the game like painkiller, you cannot really rely on that. You have to do something else with it. And one of the things we did is like, okay, so don't let's don't treat the team of players like uh you know, like a group that have to defend a chalk point. Let's treat them like you know, those maybe uh you know, air combat basically when they're whizzing around the enemies, you know, uh in the space they are given. So yeah, it was one of the examples how we can approach that, how we try to do that basically. We have like this team of basically like players whizzing around the enemies and fighting together those hordes of enemies. Yeah, so this is completely different dynamic, you know.

Simon Hill (Host): 8:05

I love that dynamic, it was a huge addition to the series, you know, co-op is so much fun when you're playing with friends, and you're able, as you mentioned just there, to face new challenges that differ from a solo playthrough.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 8:18

Yeah, exactly. Uh like I said, one of the one of the things about the co-op games, you know, if you want to create like a true co-op game, uh you have to rely on your team's home how you know the team is important, your teammates are important, you know, for you. And uh in a game like painkiller, where you have like this powerful protagonist, you know, in a classic painkiller game, that is basically like one-man army, there are some things we had to you know figure out to work around that because we still want players to feel powerful, we still want them to have like powerful weapons at hand, powerful tools basically to dispatch the hordes of enemies. Uh, but still we we had to find some ways to to make the team gel, you know. The team should not be only there for you, you know, for just to be there, they should help you. There should be there should be like a meaningful cooperation between the players, and this is something that was really hard. But at the same time, because of the how we you know define the loadouts, uh I think we managed to do that. Like you have to play together to really own the battlefield in this game. Uh you know, when you're fighting alone, when you know, with without the help of your team, uh it can be really hard, it can be hard to survive. But if you work together, if you come with your attacks, you really can own the battlefield, you can just dispatch the enemies in a whole different way, you know, than solo.

Simon Hill (Host): 9:43

That's what I love about this. You know, you can go out and revive your teammates air health packs, and you'll need to work together to get through those hordes of enemies that you come up against, which again is a new aspect to the painkiller IP.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 9:57

Yes, this is a whole completely new dynamic because, like you said, you have to use those items, you have to uh revive your uh friends, and uh you also have to you know aim together to to dispatch some of the enemies because there are some harder enemies out there, you know. That's it's probably not a good idea to solo them. You can do that. You're you have you are powerful enough to solo uh any enemy in the game, but at the same time, if you really play together, if you like uh synchronize, you know, uh it's a whole different level you can play uh with your friends. Like, for example, if we have like a special enemy, you know, going there, and it takes some time to kill those, you know, those are special enemies, they're tough enemies, but if you really synchronize together, you can just you know dispatch them in seconds. But it's it does take some cooperation, you know, to do that.

Simon Hill (Host): 10:51

And let's get into the weapons. Painkiller was always renowned for its eccentric, over-the-top weapon design from the state gun to the electro driver. What has the studio done to continue the DNA of Painkiller and its in-game arsenal?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 11:05

Yeah, we didn't want to really change up these uh cool weapons too much. So uh mostly all of the weapons, almost all of the weapons, are familiar to you if you played the original title. So, yes, we have electrodriver, we have stake gun, we have rocket launcher, we have the shotgun. It's all the classic staples of the painkiller game and also of uh like boomer shooter games. Uh we have one new weapon, it's handcannon, basically, this uh this powerful handgun that you can use, but all of the other weapons are still should feel familiar, but at the same time we were thinking, okay, what we can do to really expand on the idea of those weapons, you know, those industrial crazy weapons really with crazy effects, and we created like an upgrade system. And uh I'm really proud of the upgrade system because it's not only like stats upgrades, you know, you have you have a lot of those in games, but uh in Painkiller, you know, the upgrades you're unlocking are new gameplay effects, new things the guns can do, new uh cool ways to dispatch your enemies. You know, you have like bouncing shurikans that are like base uh base uh state of an electro driver weapon, but then uh your shurikans can bounce between enemies or maybe bounce back onto the enemies or maybe do some other cool stuff, you know. And we were trying to figure ways that we can upgrade those weapons and have those cool effects and different interactions that are not like standard, you know, for the for the games. Uh and yeah, I think we managed. We have a lot of upgrades. We have all over 72 different ways to attack enemies if you can't all their weapons and all the upgrades, you know. And those are really distinct types of attacks, not only stat upgrades.

Simon Hill (Host): 12:51

With that upgrade tool, with the creation, how crazy can we get here? How deadly and destructive can I get when I turn on the game?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 13:00

I mean you can be really destructive, you know. Uh with with a lot of upgrades, those are designed to really dispatch the enemies in great numbers. Like maybe you unlock new weapons, and maybe you know, in a base state, it's not doesn't seem that powerful, but after you add some of the upgrades, you know, on top of that, then it's you can really unleash the power. I mean you can dispatch enemies in the tents, you know. We have all often in the game, we have over 70 uh enemies even on the screen. You know, you can have up to yeah, you can have up to 17 uh 70 uh enemies, you know, 17 70 enemies on a screen, and you can dispatch them really fast if you use those upgrades creatively. So, for example, it's a great way uh to uh combine, for example, like fire attacks with ice attacks. You can freeze enemies, you can freeze them in mass in some of the attacks, like the shotgun, for example, has this uh freezing alt shot. And then if you use fire attacks, you're not only freezing those enemies and uh shattering them into pieces, but also uh if you mix those two attacks like fire and ice, you have like little explosions going on that not only shatters the frozen enemies but also damage them in the enemies around them, you know. So, yeah, uh those are effects that can you basically mix together for a greater effect. Do you have a personal favorite style and combination? I really have yeah, I my personal preference is probably hand cannon and SMG mix. You know, both are precise, but while handcannon is great for single targets, the SMG is great for dispatching groups of enemies. So, you know, choosing those two weapons, not only I'm precise because both of the VS are precise in their nature, but I also have opportunities to both you know tackle the special enemies with my hand cannon and then dispatch the order of enemies with uh SMG. And you know, if I'm putting some upgrades on SMG, I have the upgrades, electro upgrade that you can basically use it like a uh rail gun, you know, and the and you can uh hit up enemies so they blew up, and this is really way a cool way to dispatch them in groups, you know, because you exploding enemies basically with that upgrade. So, yeah, this this is my favorite mix, it's my personal favorite. But if you talk with the team, you know, I talk with the team uh all the time, of course, because we're working together, but every developer has its own preference when it comes to weapons, and this is something great. Like because we're only uh also often we were like arguing which weapon is better, you know, maybe this weapon better, maybe this, and you know, and it it always comes up comes down to you know every developer have their preference, and this is a good thing because it doesn't mean that we have like one weapon to rule them all. No, it's all about your preference, and when we play together, you know, we can see that we also choose different weapons, and it is a like a great thing to have because uh at that point you knew that yeah, all weapons are great, it's just a matter of what you prefer as a player, what you use, you know.

Simon Hill (Host): 16:12

In amongst the blood, gore hordes of demons and satisfying weapon play is a backdrop that continues where Painkiller left off. Big open arena style environments that made the series so memorable. Similar to those of Unreal Tournament, Quake, Doom, and many more. The environments are visually stunning. And they're very creative in a way that allows the player to also explore within the chaos. What were the challenges for the studio when building these areas?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 16:40

So, yeah, main challenge was basically to uh marry the the dynamic of couple players basically whizzing around the arenas, you know, uh, with the design itself. And our idea of uh proper arena combat design is that it is basically our racetrack, you know, with the movement you have, we have dashes, you have uh slides, you have hookshots that you can use, and we always designed arenas in a way that you can whiz around them, you know, like on a racetrack, you always have routes you can go through while dispatching the enemies. So can you be always on the move? We didn't want to have any you know uh like dead ends or any uh arena areas that you you basically are stopped in your tracts. Yeah, each arena is designed in mind that yeah, you should be able to just whiz around it to move from one point of the arena to the other point really, really fast, because maybe there's a special there, or maybe there's a group enemies just spawning in, and you want to get there fast, you know, so you should be able to. So, yeah, that was the main main uh thing we did with the with the arenas uh to just design them in a way that it's really easy and comfortable to traverse using our uh movement uh actions basically.

Simon Hill (Host): 18:00

Within these environments, what are some of the favorite additions for gameplay mechanics for you coming into the new era of painkiller?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 18:08

I think the uh we changed the dynamic of the of the painkiller weapon itself. Uh and uh I like really like the hook shots and we shredder, we call it, you know. So now with the painkiller weapon, you can basically hook onto the enemies to uh just you can really use it as a movement mechanic. And even I seen players you know just throwing enemies up in the air and then hooking onto the enemies to move around this way, and you can yes, you can do that. So, yeah, this is something that that is new basically. Uh it's it is a part of classic pink killer weapon, but but it is a new mechanic, it is different than the original, but I think it's really really fun to use.

Simon Hill (Host): 18:51

And you'll fight your way through eerie, forgotten gardens, catacombs, empty cathedrals, and even mines. Do you have a personal favorite environment? Because they're very creative.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 19:02

I mean, with all the environments, uh, they were inspired by the myths, you know, uh of the olden uh you know, old myths like we have like an uh Atlantis, myth of Atlantis, so we have level that is basically underwater, you know. We have levels that are uh in those mines, for example, those are Solomon mines, you know, uh place of myth basically. And those were the inspirations for the levels, but honestly, my personal favorite are gothic levels, and I think uh the the one we call cathedral, you know, this is like an internal name, uh with all the gothic architecture and stuff. This is really painkiller, like it's the classic painkiller had also this style of uh of environment, and this is my personal favorite also, uh, because it is nostalgic, but at the same time we twisted the space a little bit. And the spaces we have in the game are you know like a twisted visions of myths and legends we have uh in real life, and uh the cathedral level with still it has this gothic architecture, but it's twisted, it's windy, you know, it's unnatural, and I really, really like it.

Simon Hill (Host): 20:16

What I love about it is every area feels very different from the last. We have, like you said, those really gothic, eerie sections, and then you'll have something that looks so devilishly gruesome in another aspect. When you're pulling all this research together, how are you deciding as a team what really works, as well as not just going back for that nostalgic feel, but again, bringing in that new era?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 20:43

I mean, this is this is really like a conversation on uh you know on a production level, when you design a game, you really have to think, okay, what we can do, you know, to to to really uh make it work. Because it's not only about looks, you know, the those spaces have to work in players' favor, you know. Uh you have to be comfortable uh moving around and basically dispatching enemies there. Uh it has to be like a cool place to basically tackle those challenges. So uh one of the one of the one of the reasons we did uh go into this twisted spaces is that it really supports the movement, it really supports the playstyle we were aiming for, and uh you know this unnatural feel uh that still feels somewhat familiar because of the architecture, because of the spaces you're in, but is a little bit twisted, really allowed us uh freedom to create interesting spaces gameplay-wise. And this was one of the main concerns when creating those type of levels.

Simon Hill (Host): 21:48

So we have weapons, we have our teammates, we have our backdrop. In true painkiller fashion, you've given us plenty of enemies to shoot at, and there's a lot of variety here too. Talk to us about what we'll be up against and where the inspiration came from for some of these designs on our enemies.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 22:07

Yeah, so when it comes to the uh enemy design, uh because of the co-op nature, we have like two main groups of enemies, and we have regular enemies that usually come in bigger groups, uh hordes we call them. Uh, and those are trolls, you know, those are the shielded guys, you know, the up-armoured guys, the guys that throwing basically shriek uh not shriekens, uh chakramps at you, you know. We have all these types of enemies, or like uh the enemies that blow up in your face, you know. We also have those. So those are classic enemies you can have in the this type of game, but then we also have special enemies, and special enemies are uh more co-op focused because those are tougher enemies, those are like tanks, you know, that you have to dispatch. And yeah, and there's like basically two different uh approaches when it comes to the enemies, because the horde enemies are there to you know really create this uh feeling, you know, that you have to move around because you you don't want to be surrounded by the horde, you want to move around them, you want to dispatch them in mass. So uh, and this is one thing you do, but then you have those special enemies sprinkle around, you know, and those are the enemies you should really focus on. Because uh, if you do not focus on the special enemies, they can be really deadly, you know. Uh especially, for example, we have this flying guy with a shield, and he's really tough because from the front he's almost invulnerable, you know. You have to flank him, you have to stun him to really uh for him to uh uncover his weak spots for you to dispatch him. So those those are like the all the different designs we do, you know. With okay, what is the unique thing that the enemy can do to make the fight a little bit different uh and to differentiate them from one another, you know? So yeah, those are really important when you do that.

Simon Hill (Host): 24:02

I love the introduction to the game because you don't allow the player as such to take it easy at the first point, you know, you pick your weapon up, and then you're just confronted by a horde, and you've got to really go to town to dispatch of those before then you get onto the main kind of aspects of the game. Was it always important to give the player a true painkiller introduction?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 24:27

I mean, yeah, it was it was really important for us to really make the game pick up fast. So yeah, we wanted to have those encounters as soon as we can get them out there, you know. Still, you have to have this uh maybe because of the co-op nature of the game, you have to uh have those moments to really explain some stuff to the player, but then you know, as soon as we were okay, I think the player is ready, you know, he ha has the weapon or she has the weapon. Now we can throw enemies at them, and yeah, from the from the from the get-go, we really didn't want to have lengthy uh you know tutorial segments. We really wanted players to just get into the action as soon as possible, basically.

Simon Hill (Host): 25:08

Yeah, I absolutely love that. And this is a full reimagining of the original, which I think is 20 years old at this point. The cool gothic relentless feel is still here with that modern twist as we've touched upon throughout this interview. And it's got this new modern mechanical overhaul as well. For previous fans of the franchise, will they experience everything they loved about the original?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 25:30

I would hope so, you know. Uh we really tried to uh you know keep the spirit of the original. The dynamic, of course, is really really different because of the cop nature of the game, but at the same time, you still have like a lot of enemies, you have a lot of weapons to play with, you still have those interactions you had in the original game, you know. Like uh I talked uh about the ice attacks and fire attacks, uh, weapon have those, we have electro attacks, you know, it's all part of the original title, it is also part of the game here, and you still can dispatch those enemies in an interesting manner because one of the uh strong points of the original painkillo game was that the weapons were really interesting and the effects were really interesting, and uh this is something that is really important to us, and this is also something that's present here, and yeah, the in those like little ways, the game maybe may seem uh very different from the original, but at heart, you know, we'll still uh movement shooter, we still have those interesting interactions, we still have those interesting weapons, and we still have like a lot of enemies to tackle. So, yeah, those are those are all the ways that the game is uh should feel familiar.

Simon Hill (Host): 26:42

And another familiar side of this is the score, and I think the score to any video game is very important to set that atmosphere. We have that raw, grunge, metal riffs that continue throughout your playthrough, which is fantastic. How important was that for the studio to get right?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 27:01

It was really important, it was really a focus. Uh, you know, I'm not a part of the audio team, but I do remember we had a lot of talks about that, you know, and it was from the get-go really important for our team to have that in, have this, you know, cool music and aggressive music that chimes in when the action happens. And uh, you know, it is also uh really, really challenging to make the the score fit the action, you know. It it was something they they strive to do, and I think they manage really really well. I mean the score is uh really cool, it really fits what's going on on the screen, you know, and it is dynamic, we have this dynamic system to to just turn up the music at you know good points to just fit the action, basically.

Simon Hill (Host): 27:50

Set the scene for us. The game's downloaded to my system. I start it up, click new game, and I'm dropped into purgatory. What can we expect from our introduction into a new modern painkiller where we first boot up the game?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 28:03

I mean, you really have to learn your ropes in terms of I told you a lot about movement because it is such an essential tool to just move around without the enemies. And yeah, you can expect a lot of action, you can expect a lot of running around your enemies, you know, dodging their attacks and dispatching them in the mouse, and like those two elements, like movement and also learning to combine your attacks, learning to use all these different interesting uh upgrades you have on hand, and mix them together basically, because you can do that, you can mix a lot of attacks. For example, you still have like classic stuff, like you can uh if you have uh stake gun on hand, you know, you can impale grenades, but not only can you impale your own grenades, you can impale grenades of your friends, you can impale enemies, you know, shooting projectiles at you, and you can use that. So, yeah, you have to really, really just you know, boot up the game, pick any weapon you like, and just test out the test out, you know, those uh those uh weapons, test out those upgrades because you can really do some interesting stuff with it.

Simon Hill (Host): 29:15

One standout aspect is the writing and dialogue between the characters and Metatron. There are some great one-liners in this. Not much has been released about the cast behind the characters as of the recording of this, but how vital was it for you and the team to capture that light-hearted tone between all the chaos?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 29:35

I mean, the yes, the there's a certain shift in tone uh when it comes to voiceovers, and it is because we have this team dynamic, you know. You you want to keep uh characters uh interesting, you can't want to keep them, you know, the dialogue snappy basically, and uh they have to have a lot of character to them, you know, because uh if you have a couple of characters moving around with dispatching and Is there has to be a certain team dynamic, and in a cop shooter, it is really uh important to have this dynamic going on between between the characters. And uh this was something that uh the writer tried to do, you know, with this installment to really have this dynamic of a team that is maybe sometimes they're bickering, sometimes they're really not on the same page when it comes to a lot of stuff, but uh in the end they share the same goal, you know, and they have to work together. So this dynamic was really really important.

Simon Hill (Host): 30:33

And how was the process for you whilst choosing the cast to play these key characters that you're going to essentially be living with for your playthrough of the game?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 30:44

Uh unfortunately, I won't be able to really uh elaborate on that because that was uh part of the saber that really worked with the actors. I know that they had some really great actors, they they all had basically worked on uh on different projects. So yeah, so basically uh it was all you know we we had to um trust them, you know, in their choices, but I think they they did really did manage well because you know they they know what were they uh who they're working with, and uh yeah.

Simon Hill (Host): 31:16

Yeah, it was a good process because clearly they did a great job, and the actors, the voiceovers, and the and the characters within the game are really impactful, so it is really imperative to the gameplay, and you can tell that from the delivery of that voiceover work. We love some fun insights on this show, Damien. What are some of the fun development stories and landmark moments for you whilst creating this game?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 31:39

I mean, we had a lot of you know, a lot of testing of different things, and uh one of the one of the really interesting stuff about the game development is that sometimes you create some unexpected results from the testing, you know, that you really want to be like the mainstains of the game. Uh and we had, for example, a lot of physics interactions we were experimenting with, which is really, really you know, difficult in a multiplayer game. But at the same time, uh we did uh notice that we had some really fun interactions, for example, enemies that were throwing each other off of the cliffs or something like that, you know. And we we just decided, okay, you can consider that a bug, but you can also you know consider that a feature. Like, okay, we have this big enemy running through the arena, and he's basically throwing those trash mobs around. We just decided, yeah, we just decided, okay, it is okay, it should stay as it is, you know, because it is fun, it is maybe a little bit wacky, but at the same time, we don't want to get rid of that stuff. So often during the development, you have those situations, you know, those unexpected results that you really, really like, and you want them to stay in the game.

Simon Hill (Host): 32:52

My final question is about the studio. It has a rich history of working on supporting such titles as Layers of Fear, Baldur's Gate, Divinity 2 Original Sin, Observer, Silent Hill 2, and so many more. Do you feel like the studio has grown over the last few years? And what's been a highlight for you personally?

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 33:11

For me personally, it's like the growth of the studio. Uh it is something you could you could see when working on a painkiller game. Like I'd said before, it is one of the basically it's the biggest project we work on, uh solo basically. Of course, we had Saber support, you know, like we said with voiceovers and stuff, we worked with Sabre on that, but most of the job, you know, stuff was done in studio, uh, and we really, really, really it was like a big project for us. When you work at support, you know, you have like some part of the game you're working on, but when you have to work on the whole title, and a title that is relatively new for us because this is a shooter, you know, we didn't work on the shooters before. I mean we supported some shooters, but we didn't really do a shooter from the ground up. It was a really a big learning experience. And you, you know, the people I work with, you can really see the difference when they started and the way they're basically finishing the project with the skill, you know, and the knowledge they have. It's night and day basically.

Simon Hill (Host): 34:17

And what I love to do on this show is give my guests the final word. Before I do that, guys, go and check out Painkiller. It is an incredible reimagining, it's available on PS5, Xbox, and Steam. It is a really fantastic game, and it's great to see the transition to the modern era. And I can't wait to see where this game goes. Of course, there is already an announcement of DLC coming in the future. So, really exciting stuff coming from you in the studio. Damien, I want to thank you so much for taking the time to be here today. Absolute pleasure to have the studio be a part of Gone Gold. What I'm gonna do is leave the floor with you and allow you to end the show. A lot of people choose to thank the fans or the studio or whatever you want to do, but the floor is yours. Damien, once again, thank you for taking the time to be on Gone Gold today.

Damian Wyspiański (Creative Director: Anshar Studios: 35:04

Yeah, thank you very much. Also, it was a pleasure talking with you. And as for the you know the the message I have, I really want to thank the team for the hard work they put in into the game. And I really, really encourage you to try the painkiller with your friends. You know, it is a lot of fun. It is a game that is designed around the idea of fighting the spouse of hell together with your friends. And I really think you can have a lot of fun, you know, doing that in this game. So just grab your friends and soul mayhem basically in the purgatory. Wasn't that such a fun interview?

Simon Hill (Host): 35:41

You can tell the passion behind that project for the studio, really insightful, and again is a passion project. Those kind of games really grabbed me when I was younger as well and growing up, and to see that now they're getting that reimagined, nice little modern touch whilst keeping the same elements that we know and loved of the classic IP. Great to see the studio doing good things and can't wait to see what the future holds. Really enjoyed that episode and definitely looking forward to hopefully getting them back on in the future with their next upcoming projects. Thank you to everyone who stayed with us throughout this episode. And if you enjoyed this, be sure to give it a rating, head down on your chosen platform, whether it be Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, Podbin, whatever it might be, make sure you do give this show a rating, which helps us reach more people, climbs those charts, and we're able to then solidify and bring in more guests, more episodes more importantly. Thank you again to everybody who waited so patiently for this next episode. We will be back next week with another stellar episode. You don't want to miss this. I know I've said episode a lot. Look, it's been a while, right? Let me get back into the swing of things. We will be back next week, ladies and gentlemen. Don't forget to follow us Gone Gold Show across all of social media. You can follow me as well, Simon H official across X, Instagram, and TikTok. I'll be back next week with another episode that you don't want to miss. You know what to do keep it gone gold.