So what did I do over my Christmas Holiday? Did I brave 300 miles of snow-capped passes in a Camaro? Did I open the front door of my family's house and surprise my family with my unexpected arrival? Did I eat enough turkey to make me pass out at the dinner table? Did I get to force my family into a scavenger hunt of inane (or insane) riddles and force them to 'find' their gifts?
Nay. My holiday of holidays were spent with Gabe and Tycho of the enormously popular Penny Arcade comic strip, and with their help I:
Had my house crushed by a walking 500 foot tall fruit juicer, aptly named 'The Fruit Fucker' because of the way it 'extracts' the juice.
Killed at least 40 hobos with a lawn rake.
Battled a cult of mimes that worshipped a Lovecraftian Elder God that looked like a French Cthulhu.
Escaped from an asylum filled with enormous man-eating spiders.
Fought a rich and famous safari-hunter whose greatest trophy are the enormous testicles of a rhinoceros.
Killed more people, this time with a garden hoe.
Burned down the coolest apartment complex in history with a burning pie.
Was granted entry into an exclusive league of scientists and professors by battling my killer robot monkey against theirs.
No, seriously... Killing untold legions of hobos, mimes, clowns, the mentally ill, the wealthy, and orange-humping robots with lawn-and-garden tools was way better than hanging out with my extended family who never stop asking me "when are you getting married?" Sometimes I wish I could pack around a shovel or something...
Before someone takes my IP address to the nearest police station (or mental health institute) I need to clarify myself:
Pay Otters Potty 1 & 2 is an episodic downloadable game available on Xbox Live and the Playstation Network, as well as available for purchase on the PC from their website. Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is an RPG (Roll-Playing Game; think 'Final Fantasy', 'World of Warcraft', etc); however, it is probably one of the most mind-bendingly hysterical games I've ever played. Penny Arcade Adventures makes a mockery of everything and anything in standard RPGs with their typical Penny-Arcade humor.
A prime example is in Episode 2 you are trying to get in to see the doctor/hunter of the asylum, but the old secretary, Rose, won't let you in to see him. She says that the office isn't colorful enough, so you have to go collect flowers for her. You bring her flowers, she then she says she's hungry. You then have to kill love-stuck couples and steal their candies (...it's funnier when you play the game), and bring them back to her. She then wants a million dollar diamond and gold bracelet, to which you can reply: "There's no pleasing this old hag!"
From the beginning, you get to customize a character that may or may not look anything like you. Your alter ego starts Penny Arcade Adventures simply raking his front lawn, when out of the blue a huge robot steps on your house, leaving you to watch in disbelief as it continues deeper into the suburbs. As you continue to stare, two characters race past you in pursuit of the giant robot.
The first is Tycho. Like in the comics, Tycho is bitter and sarcastic, and is the more 'grounded' of the two. He is a gun wielding a scholar of Apocalyptic Studies turned detective. Tycho's primary weapon is either a machine gun or a shotgun (depending on which episode you're playing), which he carries in one hand. In his other hand he carries a book of some sort, which he can't get his nose out of long enough to shoot a clown or hobo. While it's implied that the book is probably some evil text along the lines of the Necronomicon (book of the dead), judging by the character's use of horrifically large words, it's probably a thesaurus.
The second is Gabe. Again, like in the comics he's hyperactive, impulsive, oblivious, but prone to extreme rage, which results in either profanity or deaths. Gabe is the fighter of the group; his weapon, aside from his fists, is usually some sort of extreme brass knuckles (like with machetes attached). As a contrast to Tycho's expansive vocabulary, Gabe usually speaks using only simple, common words. As for his personality, he's definitely the character that keeps Penny Arcade Adventures from getting to serious with itself (???) by making crazy comments and absurd observations. He reminds me of the comic-relief you'd typically see in a children's movie, but more in a perverted Monty Python-esque realm of humor (which is right up my ally, actually...).
Here's an example of some of their non-video game/non-sci-fi movie reference jokes (so the non-nerds can all have a good laugh, too):
Anyways, Gabe and Tycho invite you along their adventure in order to avenge the destruction of your home. Little did you know that you would embark on what is probably the funniest video game adventure of all time. (Except for Monkey Island... and Psychonauts... and Grim Fandango... and... ah, fuck it. It's still funny, though.) You visit Tycho's niece, Anne-Claire, the teenage genius and robotics engineer who sends you on quests to find pieces to Fruit Fucker Prime (the robot that smashed your house). Along the way you realize that there is a cult of mimes who are trying to resurrect their dark mime deity.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is 3D with cell-shading to give it a cartoonish look. Penny Arcade Adventures doesn't look too bad overall, but where the graphics shine are the animated cut scenes that play out in their High-Definition comic glory. The graphics are in 720-progressive, which is clear enough for most gamers. I do want to make a shout out to the developers for making the customized character part of the cut scenes; it is one of the most impressive parts of Penny Arcade Adventures to see yourself (?) in the animated sequences.
The sound isn't anything really special. The music isn't anything really memorable, aside from the opening theme and the sitcom-esque tune played when something absurd is either said or done. Still, the music isn't bad, as in "my ears are bleeding!" bad. More like a "I'm going to listen to talk-radio while I play" kind of mediocre. I do applaud the developers for NOT giving Gabe or Tycho voices in the game, it would have affected the way I read the Penny Arcade comics in a probable bad way. I do believe that not doing voices in a video game that plays like a comic (the source material) was a wise choice.
The gameplay can be confusing at first. My first feeling was being overwhelmed by so many things going on at once: Managing items (normal RPG), choosing attacks (normal RPG), AND timing the blocks against enemy attacks (not-so-normal RPG). I was being attacked from all different sides, trying to block ceaseless attacks while using items and selecting attacks at the same time, which was a frustrating experience until I got the hang of it.
For basic offense, there are three guages for each character that take time to fill. First is the item guage, second is the basic attack guage, and third is the special attack guage. Special attacks involve mini-games of timed button-pressing that, while fun and interesting at first, slowly become really trite and tiresome. You do, however, earn different attacks, but the mini-games are essentially the same in each Episode, but have increased difficulty to reflect their potential for increased damage. If two or more characters have their special attack guages full, you can do a combined attack for more damage, and won't have to mess with a mini-game to pull it off.
Defense (blocking) is a simple matter of timing your block button to an enemy's attack. When the enemy's lifebar flashes 'BLOCK!' you tap the button and pull off a partial block, a block, or a counter attack depending on your timing.
Support Characters also have their own guage to fill, but fills much slower because of the amount of damage the support characters do.
The items are hilarious. Instead of the normal 'potions' to heal yourself you get anal suppositories and essentially Vicodin. The weapon upgrades are ridiculous (but funny). A prime example: You go from a rake, to a super rake, to a kung-fu rake fused with the soul of the Mime Pope. ...You'll have to play Penny Arcade Adventures to understand.
Then there are the mini-games. OH GOD, THEY'RE AWESOME!! In Episode 1 you get the chance (meaning 'it's required') to partake in carnival games like 'Flying Pricks' (pop the balloons), 'Vandalism' (throw ball at milk bottles), and 'Balls and Holes' (ski ball). While they are good time wasters, there are a few hidden gags:
In Episode 2, the mini game that shines is the 'Sanity' puzzle game starring the famed devil and pompus cat, Twisp and Catsby, who help the player fight off insanity-inducing drugs. It's hard to explain, but the closest thing I can think of is that game 'Pipe Dreams'. It's difficult, but not impossible, and is really a treat.
The Penny Arcade Adventures successfully defies normal RPG conventions in a few ways. Firstly, it's not often that the normal monster battles are the focus of an RPG. Typically an RPG has some world-threatening boss that drives the story, while the monster fights are just space filler. Not so in PAA, where the normal battles are heavily story-driven and more substantial to Penny Arcade Adventures as a whole. It's an improvement, in my opinion. Secondly, Penny Arcade Adventures never takes itself seriously, which is also refreshing. Killing hobos with rakes definately stands apart from the thousands of games where you fight monsters with swords and shields. Thirdly, there isn't as much room to 'level up' in a classical RPG sense. Normally there are enough enemies that you can continually gain experience and level yourself up to the point of being Godlike. In Penny Arcade, there are only so many enemies that exist in the game, so Penny Arcade Adventures has its own level cap. This is kind of a bummer, in my opinion.
Lastly, one comment that I wasn't sure where to put is an observation of mine: The two episodes have their own strengths and weaknesses.
Episode 1 - Starts off kind of dull, and works its way up to being funny. Quests don't feel too terribly tedious.
Episode 2 - Much funnier than the first all the way through. Quests feel more tedious... almost painfully.
I think that if there is an Episode 3, they should try to take the best of the two strengths and hopefully not get any worse in their respective weaknesses.
OVERALL
You're probably wondering why I quoted George Carlin from the Bill & Ted movie at the top of the page. It's because, like the quote states, Penny Arcade Adventures gets better, but in different ways. The first game starts off slow, and picks up speed with funnier situations. As far as the humor between both games, Episode 2 is by far the funniest. However, in contrast to the quote, the gameplay in the second game feels far too repetitive with the 'Fetch Quests' where you're looking for items. To be fair, Episode 2 is also a longer game than Episode 1, so it doesn't just 'feel longer'.
Where Penny Arcade Adventures excels in gameplay is with the unconventional way it crashes standard RPG elements by making every enemy fight substantial to the story as a whole, rather than an endless wave of cannon fodder that contributes little aside from experience points. Penny Arcade Adventures also pokes a lot of fun at the 'tried-and-true' RPG in the dialoge and even with the names of the items.
The humor is probably an acquired taste, but if IS your taste, you'll enjoy what Penny Arcade Adventures has to offer. The jokes are too mature for younger kids, despite the whole 'cartoon' look. If you're an action junkie, look somewhere else because there's a lot of 'collecting' and 'quests' in this game. Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness probably isn't deep enough for an RPG junkie, either.
I see the two Episodes as good games (especially for the price), though far from great. If you're looking for something fresh and funny, or if you're a fan of the Penny Arcade comics and/or their style of humor, I would at least give Episode 1 a try to see if it's you're thing. Episode 2 is deeper, funnier, but more tiring with the item collecting element of the games.
You thought I was kidding about the rhino-balls thing, didn't you?
Graphics
7.0
There's nothing 'revolutionary' about the graphics, even in HD, but they do hold true to the 'comic' look. The cutscenes are well rendered in High-Def, however.
Sound
4.0
The soundtrack has a good opening theme, but not much else is memorable. No voice acting (which is a GOOD thing, in my opinion).
Gameplay
7.0
I really hate 'Item Quests' in RPGs, so I'm not much of a fan of it here, either. However, Penny Arcade does break conventional RPG elements, and mostly for the better.
Story
9.5
FUCKING HILARIOUS!
Replay Value
5
It's entirely up to you if you want to go through the games again. Personally, the repetitive 'Fetch Quests' cripples replayability. There are, however, great boss battles and hilarious scenarios that might bake it worth while to see again. Replayability woudl be improved if Penny Arcade Adventures didn't have its own level-cap. Trophies and Acheivements will appeal to some.
OVERALL
7.5
Not a bad score to give a not-a-bad-game. For Xbox Live and Playstation Network games, they are some of the better ones for the price. Recommended for those with similar tastes in humor and fans of the comic.
Have you heard that any sequels for Penny Arcade Adventures have been
canceled? Gabe and Tycho will only make a new comic now that will be off of
the script of the now dead in the water sequels. Hothead Games the
developer crapped out on Penny Arcade Adventures because they are making a
different game called DeathSpank. Those assholes.
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Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness - Episodes 1 & 2
The first is Tycho. Like in the comics, Tycho is bitter and sarcastic, and is the more 'grounded' of the two. He is a gun wielding a scholar of Apocalyptic Studies turned detective. Tycho's primary weapon is either a machine gun or a shotgun (depending on which episode you're playing), which he carries in one hand. In his other hand he carries a book of some sort, which he can't get his nose out of long enough to shoot a clown or hobo. While it's implied that the book is probably some evil text along the lines of the Necronomicon (book of the dead), judging by the character's use of horrifically large words, it's probably a thesaurus.
The second is Gabe. Again, like in the comics he's hyperactive, impulsive, oblivious, but prone to extreme rage, which results in either profanity or deaths. Gabe is the fighter of the group; his weapon, aside from his fists, is usually some sort of extreme brass knuckles (like with machetes attached). As a contrast to Tycho's expansive vocabulary, Gabe usually speaks using only simple, common words. As for his personality, he's definitely the character that keeps Penny Arcade Adventures from getting to serious with itself (???) by making crazy comments and absurd observations. He reminds me of the comic-relief you'd typically see in a children's movie, but more in a perverted Monty Python-esque realm of humor (which is right up my ally, actually...).
