Microtransaction Microreview: Penny Arcade Adventures: OtRSPoD

Posted by Gary Hodges at 9:15 PM May 22, 2008

I have to say, I'm surprised and reassured by the mainstream gaming press' (relative) maturity in reviewing Penny Arcade Adventures; I had even money that half of these outfits would be lunging at the chance to lace into the game in some gesture of petty revenge for years and years of rough treatment at the hands of Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik.

On the other hand: would any outlet really want to really tear this game apart? Would anyone really have the will to flip off not just Penny Arcade’s millions of fans, but Holikins and Krahulik themselves? Only an idiot invites that sort of attention. It’d be like announcing to the world at large – which includes the IRS – that I wrote off a $5000 high-def TV last year with the flimsy justification that I play games on it.

(Which, um, I did not. No really, I would never do anything like that – why would I deny my glorious nation their tribute? I’m fine with my tax dollars going to, you know, all the great things it does... like illegal wars and no-bid contracts and stuff. What? No, there was no “tone”. A face? I didn’t think I was making a face, it was probably just a tic or something. Look: it just came out wrong, let’s just forget about the whole thing. Oh Jesus, I’ve said too much, haven’t I?)

Well unfortunately for vengeful professional malcontents who've been the target of Penny Arcade's wit - and fortunately for those who would be too goddamned afraid to pan the game - Penny Arcade Adventures’ first episode is pretty good. Crisis averted.

Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness
Developer: Hothead Games / ESRB Rating: M / Price: 1600 MS Points ($20)

There’s an extra, extra-extra easy way to review On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness for you: if you like Penny Arcade, you’ll like this game. If you’re that guy who doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about, you won’t – there we go, all done. It really is that simple because the game leans so heavily on Holkins' sense of humor/style of writing and Krahulik’s art – subtract those two things, and all you really have is a relatively brief demo of an RPG combat system.

Fortunately, the system is a decent one. Here are the basics: turn-based with real time elements (the action never pauses, so if you aren’t entering commands, the enemies are getting free turns), no random encounters (thus no grinding, which is good or bad depending on how you approach RPGs), with skill-based special attacks (timed button pressing, etc.). Combat goes quickly, and the game keeps things brisk by chopping a lot of typical RPG housekeeping issues (for example, your party is automatically revived and healed after every battle).

There are only three areas in the game where you actually explore and fight battles, which the game stretches into 8 hours or so of playtime doing tasks familiar to most gamers, albeit with a Penny Arcade twist. (For example: many games have had us collect components for a potion; the Penny Arcade equivalent involves collecting the ingredients for Hobo Soup, a dish – unlike, for example, 'baby food' – that is exactly what it says.)

I’m not going to spoil the story, because that’s the whole game, really... but to sum up the essence of it I’ve worked out this helpful equation:

Personally, I found it hilarious throughout and loved the whole PA aesthetic, even if toward the end I was growing weary of Holkins' obsession with ascribing ancient and reviled dark magicks to everyday objects like crabs and ice cream. Examining a rampaging robot’s huge winding key, the game notes:

You sense that this twisted key has been party to a campaign of evil.

No question, that’s the running gag: not taking things very seriously very seriously. But by the end of the game, the joke starts to wear a little thin. On the other hand, I always had to giggle when battling a gang of robotic Fruit Fuckers, and the way they’re “distracted” if you toss oranges at them. (Just picture that horrifying scene in Pulp Fiction of Marsellus, Zed, and Maynard in the pawnshop basement, with the orange playing the part of Marsellus.)

In any case, PAA:OtRSPoD (jesus) is a fun diversion that looks, plays and certainly reads better than most (any?) other Xbox Live Arcade title. On its price, though: I’m looking the other way with the assumption the “sequels” will be lower-priced add-ons to this product. Because I’m not sure 8-hour games with no replayability are really worth $20.

Final Rating:

4 out of 5 Blue Pig Ganons

...With the caveat that if you're not a fan of Holkins' writing, you should subtract 1-2 BPGs based on your fondness for turn-based RPGs.

Two last semi-related items:

1) Playing through the game, I was trying to remember the last game I played that was so genuinely amusing (other than Portal, but that’s a different kind of funny)… and I think it was the Monkey Island games, which made me think about how fucking awesome it would be to get 'em on XBLA. What say you, jurors?

2) Capcom released a couple new Super Street Fighter II HD Remix screens the other day, and I’m troubled. Why is it each round of pics has the same problem?:

Am I the only one in the world who sees the super gauge is distractingly, obnoxiously, inexplicably, inexcuseably hovering in front of the fighters? That's a rhetorical question, because how could you NOT notice? A few months ago, I just assumed it was beta stuff they’d fix eventually. Yet it's still there.

Capcom, don’t you dare release this game with the HUD obscuring your player. In fact, don’t you dare release any more screenshots with the problem – it looks amateurish and embarrassing.

How is this related to Penny Arcade? Well, it’s not, it’s a downloadable game, though, and… look, I wasn’t going to make a whole post just about THAT, dude. Leave me alone.