PAPERHEAD clips and upgrades
Two shops. Regular clips heal and restock. Golden clips, found in secrets, buy the tree — including optional prop-carry.
EP.0 and the demo had clips that did nothing. Almost every player assumed they were shop currency. Devlog 4 says that instinct was right — the shops just were not in those builds. October 9 is when clips start spending.
Two colours
| Clip | Where | What it buys in 1.0 (developer list) |
|---|---|---|
| Regular ("coin-clips") | Common, collectathon density | Consumable shop: refill HP, restock ammo, buy armor, extra weapons. A huge dump can buy a skill point. |
| Golden | Secrets | Upgrade tree: more ammo/HP, better abilities and weapons, plus joke extras |
There are two shops, not one. Do not dump gold into a healing kiosk. Do not sit on a pile of regular clips waiting for a "better" tree — regular clips are the ammo/HP layer.
The developer was explicit about tone: this is extra "something to do," not a mandatory grind. Example runs they named: all-in on the pencil, or coin farming. That is intent language, not a patch note with prices.
Regular clips: the comfort shop
Think of regular clips as the thing that lets you play sloppy and recover. Official list:
- HP refill
- Ammo restock
- Armor
- Extra weapons
- Skill point, "for a huge amount" — more on that "later" (their word). No number.
Density: "plenty of them around." So the collectathon loop from EP.0 stays, it just finally pays. If you hated picking them up in the prologue, 1.0 is why they existed.
Golden clips: the tree, and the maybe-bug
Golden clips are the secret-hunt currency. Besides the obvious (more ammo/HP, better weapons), Devlog 4 named one upgrade in detail because it was a fight in EP.0:
EP.0 shipped with the ability to carry physics objects, added at the last minute. Some players loved it. Some called it a Half-Life 2 bug. The developer almost cut it, then turned it into an optional golden-clip upgrade:
- Rank 1: carry phys objects
- Rank 2: jump off them mid-air ("glitchy prop-jump as an upgrade")
If you want the jank, you buy it. If you thought it was a bug, you can leave it on the tree. That is the whole design joke.
Other "funny extras" are mentioned without names. This page will not invent them.
How to spend on day one
- Pocket every regular clip you see. Spend them on ammo/HP when a room punished you, not in the first kiosk for a weapon you have not missed yet.
- Note golden clip locations. Secrets are the tree. Missing them is missing ranks, not missing the campaign — the developer said the system is optional comfort.
- Do not buy prop-carry until you know you want it. Rank 2 is a movement tech. Rank 1 is inventory clutter if you never pick props up.
- "Skill point for a huge amount" is a sink, not a starter purchase.
Pair this with getting started so the first hour is verbs, not window shopping.
FAQ
Did clips do anything in EP.0? No shop. Players were collecting a currency with no sink.
Can I finish 1.0 without the tree? That is the stated intent. Not a tested claim.
Are golden clips missable forever? "You'll find them in secrets." Persistence / NG+ is unpublished.
