a competition than a compliment." Remixes The song's main remix, titled Desert Storm Remix, features female rappers Da Brat and Missy Elliott. It is the first of Carey's remixes that was produced by Desert Storm Records producer and rapper DJ Clue, who makes an introduction on the remix. The remix contains lyrical interpolations and an instrumental sample from "Ain't No Fun (If the Homies Can't Have None)" by Snoop Dogg. In an interview with MTV News, Carey spoke of the song's remix before its official release in August 1999: "And then the remix. I'm so excited about the remix. It's also gonna go on the album, and it features Missy Elliott and Da Brat, and it's kinda like a girl-power answer record, and it's to the loop of Snoop [Dogg]'s 'Ain't No Fun.' They're not ready for that one!". A separate music video was filmed for the remix, shot in black and white and featuring a cameo appearance by Dogg. The Desert Storm Remix received mixed reviews from music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine chose the song as one of the top three cuts on Rainbow, alongside the original. Danyel Smith from Entertainment Weekly called it "[an] overblown [...] miscalculation" and wrote "Missy Elliott's and Da Brat's bad sexual politics sink the tired 'Heartbreaker [Remix].' Larry Flick from Billboard, called the remix "muscular" and "street-savvy" and wrote "Missy Elliott and Da Brat lace rhymes into the track, which is enhanced by the sample from Snoop Dogg's 'Ain't No Fun (If The Homies Can't Have None)'." Additional remixes of "Heartbreaker" include a remix that interpolates "If You Should Ever Be Lonely" by singer Val Young, as well as a live mashup of "Heartbreaker" and "Love Hangover" by Diana Ross, performed for VH1 Divas 2000: A Tribute to Diana Ross tribute for Ross. The latter remix was released for digital download and streaming in October 2020, when Carey released the "Heartbreaker" EP as part of her #MC30 EP series. Critical reception "Heartbreaker" received mixed reviews from contemporary music critics, some of whom compared it heavily to Carey's previous lead singles. Dara Cook from MTV called the song an "airy ditty" and wrote "[On the song] Mariah exudes as much sentiment as hollowed-out driftwood." Cook continued onto the song's production, writing "By texturing it into the song, producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have finally found productive use (other than song closing spectacle) for