Imbuing a sense of freedom that American cross-country highways evoke with a dash of Hollywood car chases, Heading Out isn’t an ordinary driving game.
Images: Saber Interactive
Heading Out’s publishers, Saber Interactive, talk about driving films such as Thelma & Louise and Vanishing Point as the inspiration behind the upcoming narrative-driven driving game.
But for me, it seems to be an amalgamation of Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller’s Sin City mixed with Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof.
The 2007 epic follows ‘Stuntman Mike’ and his supposedly indomitable Chevrolet Nova.
Putting aside the plot, there are numerous scenes featuring classic muscle cars, drifting, sliding, and crashing – even one with someone riding on the hood for kicks. Take that and combine it with the almost cartoonish, black-and-white, aesthetic of Sin City and you’re nearly there with what Heading Out is aiming to achieve.
It’s a driving game, without colour, in '70s beasts and with the aim of making it across the United States of America – here replicated with 15 unique areas, inspired by the likes of Minnesota, Utah and Oklahoma.
Turn up the guitar music and fill up the gas tank.
It’s not just about the driving though. As an outlaw, you will encounter comic-book-style characters, some of whom set you challenges, mixed with the in-car radio station that provides context to your surrounding environment and actions.
Sitting alongside the hosts, with over 300 clips played depending on your choices, is a soundtrack, one that has been created specifically for this game by Sound Designer Damian Czajka. There will be at least 19 tracks, six with vocals, and they are set to be released alongside the game as EP.
Your character seems anxiety-riddled, to the point where diazepam can be bought at rest holts to reduce fear levels. Focus can be increased by purchasing cigarettes or coffee instead, and as you progress, there are overall ‘fame’ and ‘reputation’ levels to keep an eye on, updating based on your performance.
This is the key plotline, according to its creators, based on answers to questions – it's not about how you look on the outside through customisation options, but your feelings. Psychology is said to fuel the narrative.
“A lot of the things that we reference are very modern, some of the problems we want to show are the current topics and the story we want to provide is targeted for a bit more mature audience,” says Tech Artist, Marcin Krzeszowiec to OverTake.
Don’t let that put you off, it’s not The Binding of Isaac of car games – or at least, it doesn’t seem that way.
But you can select your own pathway. The game is broken down into four main acts, and it is possible to cause a perma-death. Mercifully, this will not take you back to the start of the whole game, just that quarter.
At the end of each act, you will be faced with a ‘big’ challenge, with the choice of how to end your story.
Cash, tiredness and car condition all need to be taken into consideration. Making it to the end is expected to take between eight and 12 hours, although the development team was keen to stress that due to its evolving story and routes, multiple playthroughs should offer different experiences.
When on the road, you may have to race NPC characters or escape the cops. Failure to do the latter will result in a fine.
The game is being created by Polish team Serious Sim as its first driving title and has been in development for over four years. Two of those years have been under the stewardship of publisher Saber Interactive, which was recently bought back from Emrbacer Group by its original founder.
It is currently slated for a Steam-only PC release on 7th May 2024, although the team is open to the possibilities of consoles depending on how well it is received.
Certainly, when the final version arrives, Heading Out is distinctive enough to stand out in a busy crowd – we'll have to see how the driving experience and story play out in just under a month’s time.
Are you open to experiencing something a little different, a driving game with a story? Let us know in the comments below, or on X, @OverTake_gg.
Images: Saber Interactive
Heading Out’s publishers, Saber Interactive, talk about driving films such as Thelma & Louise and Vanishing Point as the inspiration behind the upcoming narrative-driven driving game.
But for me, it seems to be an amalgamation of Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller’s Sin City mixed with Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof.
The 2007 epic follows ‘Stuntman Mike’ and his supposedly indomitable Chevrolet Nova.
Putting aside the plot, there are numerous scenes featuring classic muscle cars, drifting, sliding, and crashing – even one with someone riding on the hood for kicks. Take that and combine it with the almost cartoonish, black-and-white, aesthetic of Sin City and you’re nearly there with what Heading Out is aiming to achieve.
It’s a driving game, without colour, in '70s beasts and with the aim of making it across the United States of America – here replicated with 15 unique areas, inspired by the likes of Minnesota, Utah and Oklahoma.
Turn up the guitar music and fill up the gas tank.
There’s a Story
It’s not just about the driving though. As an outlaw, you will encounter comic-book-style characters, some of whom set you challenges, mixed with the in-car radio station that provides context to your surrounding environment and actions.
Sitting alongside the hosts, with over 300 clips played depending on your choices, is a soundtrack, one that has been created specifically for this game by Sound Designer Damian Czajka. There will be at least 19 tracks, six with vocals, and they are set to be released alongside the game as EP.
Your character seems anxiety-riddled, to the point where diazepam can be bought at rest holts to reduce fear levels. Focus can be increased by purchasing cigarettes or coffee instead, and as you progress, there are overall ‘fame’ and ‘reputation’ levels to keep an eye on, updating based on your performance.
This is the key plotline, according to its creators, based on answers to questions – it's not about how you look on the outside through customisation options, but your feelings. Psychology is said to fuel the narrative.
“A lot of the things that we reference are very modern, some of the problems we want to show are the current topics and the story we want to provide is targeted for a bit more mature audience,” says Tech Artist, Marcin Krzeszowiec to OverTake.
Rouge-lite
Don’t let that put you off, it’s not The Binding of Isaac of car games – or at least, it doesn’t seem that way.
But you can select your own pathway. The game is broken down into four main acts, and it is possible to cause a perma-death. Mercifully, this will not take you back to the start of the whole game, just that quarter.
At the end of each act, you will be faced with a ‘big’ challenge, with the choice of how to end your story.
Cash, tiredness and car condition all need to be taken into consideration. Making it to the end is expected to take between eight and 12 hours, although the development team was keen to stress that due to its evolving story and routes, multiple playthroughs should offer different experiences.
When on the road, you may have to race NPC characters or escape the cops. Failure to do the latter will result in a fine.
Four Years In The Making
The game is being created by Polish team Serious Sim as its first driving title and has been in development for over four years. Two of those years have been under the stewardship of publisher Saber Interactive, which was recently bought back from Emrbacer Group by its original founder.
It is currently slated for a Steam-only PC release on 7th May 2024, although the team is open to the possibilities of consoles depending on how well it is received.
Certainly, when the final version arrives, Heading Out is distinctive enough to stand out in a busy crowd – we'll have to see how the driving experience and story play out in just under a month’s time.
Are you open to experiencing something a little different, a driving game with a story? Let us know in the comments below, or on X, @OverTake_gg.
