Where Giants Fall — v0.51 Patch Notes
v0.51 adds Skybreaker and Chrono Veil, lets players choose an active ability before a run, introduces the first Journey Selection flow, rebuilds the main menu into a live cinematic scene, and improves weapons, shop flow, audio, and menu performance.
Where Giants Fall v0.51 adds two new active abilities, expands starting loadout choice, introduces the first version of Journey Selection, rebuilds the main menu into a live in-engine scene, and improves several weapons, UI flows, music transitions, and menu performance.
This update is centered on giving runs a stronger identity from the very start. You can now choose an active ability before a run begins, route your way forward with the first Journey Selection step, and play around two new clutch actives: Skybreaker and Chrono Veil.
v0.51 Ability Showcase
Skybreaker and Chrono Veil lead the v0.51 update with two very different ways to swing a fight back in your favor.
Major Highlights
- Added Skybreaker, a new lightning-based active ability.
- Added Chrono Veil, a new time-slow active ability.
- Active abilities can now be selected before starting a run.
- Added the first version of Journey Selection.
- Rebuilt the main menu into a live in-engine scene.
- Reworked Golden Gun around a clearer execution rhythm.
- Improved the in-run shop with visible gold, hover feedback, and purchase effects.
- Improved main-menu performance, loading, music variety, and scene transitions.
New Active Ability: Skybreaker
Skybreaker is a new active ability with an 18-second cooldown.
It calls down a charged blue thunderstrike about 15 meters in front of the player.
The base version hits hard, always crits on the main strike, and stuns regular enemies caught in the blast.
Skybreaker upgrades through:
- Larger blast radius
- Longer regular-enemy stun duration
- Heavier damage
- A final Aftershock upgrade that sends a second shockwave through the strike zone
At level 5, Aftershock sends a second hit through the same area shortly after the first strike lands.
New Active Ability: Chrono Veil
Chrono Veil is a new active ability built around time control, mobility, and clutch escape windows.
Activating it slows game time to 30% for 4 seconds while giving the player +50% movement speed. It also comes with its own blue-violet slow-time screen effect.
Chrono Veil upgrades through:
- Bonus crit chance while active
- Kill-based duration extensions
- Dash blasts that shove nearby enemies away
- A final Timebreak shockwave when the effect ends
At level 4, dashes consume no dash charges while the veil is active, and every dash blasts nearby enemies away. At level 5, Timebreak fires once when the veil ends, hitting in a 12m radius around the player.
Starting Active Ability Selection
Active abilities can now be chosen as part of the starting loadout.
If no active ability is selected, the run will still assign a random active ability. This replaces the old behavior where runs always defaulted to Dragon Breath.
The result is more player control over the first shape of a run while still keeping the random-start option available.
Golden Gun Rework
Golden Gun has been reworked around a more readable execution rhythm.
Every third shot now begins a follow-up sequence, with later upgrades building that sequence further. King’s Judgment now adds a dramatic jump-and-target-lock flourish without taking movement control away from the player.
Ancient Spirits Visual Cleanup
Ancient Spirits orbs now circle closer to the player.
Their impact flash is also smaller and briefer, making the weapon easier to read in darker stages while keeping its combat behavior intact.
Journey Selection
The first version of Journey Selection has been added.
New runs and stage-complete continues now ask the player to choose the next destination while still preserving the intended full run structure before Endless.
This is an early step toward giving runs more identity and allowing clearer route decisions between stages.
Main Menu Rebuild
The main menu has been rebuilt into a live in-engine scene.
It now features:
- Selected hero showcase
- Distant Phalanx presentation
- Where Giants Fall logo
- Fantasy-styled buttons
- Clearer Current Loadout cards
- Live biome backdrop
The main menu can now open on a Summer, Autumn, or Winter biome backdrop, giving the title screen more variety between sessions.
Biome switching has also been improved. The menu now fades from the old biome frame into the new one, and startup remains covered until the backdrop is ready, reducing loading flashes and rough visual transitions.
The Current Loadout panel now uses more consistent two-line descriptions for weapons and active abilities so longer descriptions are easier to read.
Shop Improvements
The in-run item shop has been improved.
It now shows current gold, highlights hovered or selected items, and plays a purchase animation and sound when an item is bought.
Audio & Presentation
Main-menu music now shuffles between available soundtrack tracks for more variety.
Music fades are smoother when entering the menu, moving between stages, and ending a run.
The main menu also has a softer vignette and restored gentle foliage wind, giving the title screen a more cinematic feel.
Performance & Stability
The main menu has received several performance and reliability improvements.
Menu biome scenes are now lighter, grass is limited to the visible area, and the menu frame rate is capped so the title screen no longer pushes the GPU unnecessarily hard.
Biome switching now cleans up old menu backdrops more reliably, preventing stacked scenes and reducing memory buildup during menu browsing.
Startup and menu loading have also been tightened so the title screen appears more smoothly and consistently.
v0.51 is a run-identity update: the start of a run gives you more control, active abilities have more range and personality, and the menu presentation now feels far closer to the game’s in-run atmosphere.