Today marks the arrival of the first paid expansion for Dimensional Double Shift, transporting players to a Texas-themed universe on the Quest.
Since its launch in September, Dimensional Double Shift has introduced its initial ‘Dimension Pack’ following its recent milestone of over 500,000 downloads. As employees at Gas N’ Grill, players are now responsible for serving clients across the vibrant Hexas, featuring “demonic patrons, massive meals, and monster trucks” all vying for your services.
During GDC 2025, alongside Don Hopper, I participated in a multiplayer session of the expansion with Owlchemy Labs. The gameplay remains familiar, echoing the ‘Treeatle’ dimension found in the base version, now offering two new diner and garage settings. Similar to before, players will engage with the local populace by preparing food orders and repairing vehicles.
My earlier impressions highlighted the fundamental gameplay, and numerous updates following the initial release have notably refined the experience. The collaborative tasks prove enjoyable as friends work together to make meals or fix vehicles, with certain ingredients being exclusive to a teammate’s station. I appreciate the laid-back atmosphere of the game, which allows players to work without any time constraints.
Hexas introduces exciting twists that align with its demonic theme, along with enhancements like a ‘Room Browser’ feature for creating public rooms. While the objectives are mostly consistent, the artistic style has been creatively updated for this new dimension. From cooking in a cauldron of blood to solving new challenges when repairing Monster Trucks, players will encounter uniquely themed tasks.
What genuinely surprised me was the surprisingly awkward udder milking activity. Yes, you read that correctly. Does anyone recall that mini-game from 1-2 Switch? I would have never predicted I’d describe this, but the hand-tracking controls make it feel even more socially uncomfortable. Mid-demo, I found myself laughing uncontrollably; it’s been a while since a game made me chuckle like Thank Goodness You’re Here.
And that’s not even touching on the task of slapping the hog to open its mouth, followed by drenching it in barbecue sauce. There’s also a segment where you remove boogers from a giant head before placing a new brain inside. The chaos is absurdly humorous, balancing enjoyment for both kids and adults alike.
“One of the big pillars of this is that it’s hell not heck,” explained Owlchemy’s CEO Andrew Eiche in a post-demo discussion, accompanied by COO Sandra Marshall.
“We didn’t want to pull any punches, so we did that. We’re still a teen game, and I assure you we’ve pushed the boundaries of that rating, but we’ve always aimed to make the game appealing to all age groups. It’s challenging to draw in everyone when the content feels somewhat juvenile.” – Andrew Eiche
Priced at $4.99, it’s great to note that not every player in a party needs to purchase the Hexas Dimension. Only one individual needs to own it for others in the group to access it, although those who buy the DLC will receive special Hexas-themed cosmetics, such as a rhinestone cowboy outfit and a desert road warrior look. Eiche referenced the guest pass system in Walkabout Mini Golf, Golf+, and Jackbox Party Pack as influencing their decision.
“We found it really hard to convince four players to each spend $20 without knowing what to expect from the game. It’s much simpler when everyone else can play without charge.”
As Owlchemy’s first foray into free-to-play gaming, the studio is taking lessons from this experience, focusing on three aspects: analytics, which includes consulting with someone from Minecraft, personal evaluations of the game, and community feedback.
“There were assumptions we had that didn’t materialize. We conduct weekly events and provide matchmaking, expecting players to request continuous matchmaking, but they were content with it happening once a week.”
Other lessons include noticing that players often do not respect their designated play areas, prompting Owlchemy to implement a countdown feature that warns players to return to their zones. Marshall highlighted that many friendships are being formed during these events, leading Owlchemy to add an option for players to add their in-game companions as friends.
Owlchemy perceives the future of the VR landscape leaning towards social and immersive experiences, a point Eiche previously mentioned in an interview. The studio is steadfast in its commitment to hand tracking in their games, as they believe this controller-free approach has been validated further by the inclusion of hand tracking support in PlayStation VR2.
“They’re arriving later than most in this area, and that’s not meant as criticism. [Sony’s] focus has been on engaging hardcore gamers, but if they’re moving towards hand tracking, that’s impressive. We didn’t predict that.”
Nonetheless, Owlchemy noted that support for Job Simulator on PlayStation VR2 with hand-tracking controls isn’t imminent. They mentioned that Sony currently lacks a straightforward integration pathway through Unity, necessitating Aldin Dynamics to create an independent solution for Waltz of the Wizard. This implies that several technical challenges still need addressing.
Though Owlchemy did not provide specific details about the potential for Dimensional Double Shift on platforms like Android XR, they assured that more content updates are planned beyond the launch of the Hexas pack. New gameplay elements and additional dimensions are in the works, and updates will be shared as they become available.
The base game of Dimensional Double Shift can be accessed free in early access on the Meta Quest platform, while the Hexas Dimension Pack is priced at $4.99.