It's been a year since our review on the third installment of this series. On The Rain-slick Precipice Of Darkness Episode One Keygen bit.ly/2verucD.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness | |
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Basic Information | |
Video Game | |
[[Hothead Games]][[Category:Hothead Games]] | |
[[Penny Arcade Adventures (series)|Penny Arcade Adventures]][[Category:Penny Arcade Adventures (series)]] | |
Adventure, Role-playing | |
Download | |
Linux, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 (XBLA) and [1]PlayStation 3 (PSN)[2] | |
Ratings | |
CERO: C ESRB: M OFLC:M PEGI: 18+ | |
Main Credits | |
[[Jerry Holkins Mike Krahulik]] | |
Awards | Changelog | Cheats | Codes | Codex Compatibility | Covers | Credits | DLC | Help Localization | Manifest | Modding | Patches Ratings | Reviews | Screenshots | Soundtrack Videos | Walkthrough |
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is an episodicaction-adventurevideo game series based on the webcomicPenny Arcade.
Episode 1 was released on May 21, 2008 on Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, and Xbox Live Arcade, and was later released on PlayStation Network on October 23, 2008. There is a demo available which can be upgraded to the full game. It was later released on Steam, with new Steamworks support. Episode 2 was released on Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade on October 29, 2008.
The game was originally planned to be distributed episodically across four games. However, only two of the games were released. Penny Arcade creators Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik have announced that Episode 3 and any other future games in the series have been indefinitely postponed, and will not be developed by Hothead Games because they wanted them to work on DeathSpank. Subsequently, prose chapters constituting the plot of Episode 3 have been presented on Penny Arcade's main site.
- 2Plot
- 4Reception
Gameplay[edit | edit source]
Penny Arcade Adventures's battle screen, with Gabe and the Player executing a simultaneous attack for extra damage
Penny Arcade Adventures is an adventure game which mixes 3D gameplay with 2D interstitials and cinematics. The gameplay consists mostly of seek-and-find puzzles, reminiscent of adventure games, where the player must collect items and return them to a character to advance the plot. They can also collect spare robot parts to upgrade their weapons. Battles consist of a real time combat system similar to the ATB system of Final Fantasy Games, with context sensitive button presses reducing damage or being used to carry out special attacks.
Plot[edit | edit source]
Episode One[edit | edit source]
The game begins with the narrator reading the first verse of a poem, later called The Quartet for the Dusk of Man. The player then designs a character of their choosing; with an introduction in the 1920s suburban neighborhood of the Player. A mysterious voice instructs the Player, whose home is quickly destroyed by a giant robot (a steampunk version of Fruit Fucker Prime), while smaller steampunk Fruit Fuckers attack. After a brief tutorial, the player teams up with Tycho Brahe, a scholar of Apocalyptic Studies turned detective, and his exceedingly violent partner who fought with the devil,[3]Johnathan Gabriel, in search of information on Fruit Fucker Prime.
The three meet with Tycho's mechanically gifted niece, Anne-Claire, who suggests they search New Arcadia for evidence of Fruit Fucker Prime and parts of it. Tycho, Gabe, and the player begin collecting evidence of the giant robot, while also searching for a new home for the player and running afoul of a cult of mimes. They discover the smaller Fruit Fuckers are built in a factory underneath the Shithole, an apartment building the player briefly considers renting from, and that the mimes are devotees of Yog Sethis, also known as the 'Silent One'. The Necrowombicon, an ancient book that has no text but can be interpreted by a mime, describes the Silent One as 'a horrible deity of unending quiet', a giant mime with Cthulhu's head.
Tycho is horrified that he allowed himself to miss the signs of an ancient God's return previously, and despairs that all hope is lost. He then tells the others it's impossible to kill a god, but they can stop it from entering their world. The Silent One is transferring its energy into their world and putting it into a body. If they can destroy its body before the process is complete, the Silent One will go back to the other side. The player asks Anne-Claire for her input, upon which she theorises that there might be special items that can endow Tycho, Gabe, and the player's weapons with metaphysical properties capable of harming the Silent One's physical form. They gather the required items (a vacuum tube, scorched hobo urine, and the soul of the mime cult's leader), transform their weapons, and defeat the Silent One.
After the final battle, Tycho, Gabe, and the player watch the Silent One's form explode. Fruit Fucker Prime watches them from the beach, and walks into the ocean after Yog Sethis is destroyed. The second verse of the opening poem is then read aloud by the narrator.
Episode Two[edit | edit source]
Several months after Episode One ended, the Player has rebuilt his/her house (a tent), and Tycho and Gabe have set out to destroy Fruit Fuckers and try to find a lead on Fruit Fucker Prime. While escaping from a swarm of them, they crash a truck into the Player's (partially rebuilt) house, and recruit him/her to help them track down their lead. A trip to Anne-Claire's reveals that they have found the original designer of the Fruit Fuckers: Dr. Jonathan Crazoir, presently incarcerated in the same sanatorium as Tycho's father and grandfather when they succumbed to the insanity inherent to dealing with otherworldly affairs. She also demands they collect various pieces of equipment for one of her experiments: Five bolts of silk thread, preferably spider silk, a golden bolt, a truck or tractor engine, and a molecule of Energite, a highly unstable element. They enter the sanitarium to find Crazoir, who promises to give Tycho, Gabe, and the Player everything related to his research, as well as a 'robot monkey card', if they can free him from the madhouse. After wooing the receptionist, they encounter huntsman/sanatorium owner Dr. Wolfington, who has used the millions made from the Brahe family's inevitable descent into madness to hunt down and kill every rare animal in the world. He declares the Player, Tycho, and Gabe all unfit for society after a rigged ink blot test, and has them injected with various chemicals to induce insanity.
The Player fights off the drugs with the help of Twisp and Catsby, and rescues Tycho and Gabe. A guard catches them, and locks down the facility. This seals off Dr. Wolfington's doors with Strengthium, an unbreakable compound. Anne-Claire donates spare parts to fix the doors, but the power difference between her experimental fuse and the security system unseals all doors in the facility, releasing several giant spiders. The trio harvests them for their silk, as per Anne-Claire's request, collects the engine from the truck that Tycho crashed into the Player's house at the beginning of the game, and return to confront Wolfington. After the fight, they forge release papers for Crazoir and read Wolfington's journal. Crazoir is revealed to have been committed as a favor to the mysterious 'M', whose address is written down. The now-free Dr. Crazoir gives over his research, which suggests the Fruit Fucker to originally have been a farming tool called 'Harvest Buddy', before the designs were stolen by someone as he was abducted by Dr. Wolfington.
The Player, Tycho, and Gabe travel to the apartment formerly owned by 'M', in hopes of renting it. There, they confront Charles DuBois, an old enemy of Tycho and Gabe's and a ruthless treasure hunter. He plans to outright purchase the apartment out as his 'Mid-late-Fall home' (or 'early Spring home'; he hadn't decided), and Tycho insists that the Player must thwart him. A chase to the apartment ends in the landlord deciding he will give the apartment to whoever wins in a one-on-one fight to the death. Gabe goes to the kitchen to make a pie, and Tycho ransacks 'M's apartment, finding various demonic items, including the Black Ledger, a tome that catalogs every deal made between demons and mortals. He pockets the Ledger, and returns to the Player, who has easily won the 'sissy boss fight'. Gabe finishes his pie, and accidentally sets the building on fire; leaving the player homeless yet again.
Anne-Claire directs the trio next to the 'Symposium on the Future of Man' to find more information on Fruit Fucker Prime (as well as the autograph of her idol, Dr. Lars Krangle). They gain credentials with the other scientists by winning a robot monkey fighting tournament, the first place trophy of which happens to be a molecule of Energite. Unfortunately, at the end of Dr. Krangle's keynote speech, Fruit Fucker Prime attacks, killing everyone in attendance, save Tycho, Gabe, the Player, and the enigmatic Dr. Blood, distinguished by his 'timely appearance in the narrative'. The robot is revealed to be piloted by Dr. Mordo von Mundo, also known as 'M'. Dr. Blood hastily explains that the Fruit Fuckers run on Darksteam, a steam mechanism that is infused with pure evil. Mundo then admits creations are stolen designs, and he himself is ostracized from the scientific community because of his radical theories on combining science and arcane magic. He intends to prove his abilities through manipulation of Fruit Fucker Prime, which is powered by the Necrowombicon itself, while the smaller units are powered by inscriptions from the book. After Mordo leaves to enact his scheme, Dr. Blood reveals to the Player and Gabe that Fruit Fucker Prime is the avatar of yet another god: Yog Kathak, the God of Gears, which Tycho was aware of, but hid from the other two. The four unite regardless, and leave for the 1922 World's Fair to stop Mordo von Mundo once and for all.
Anne-Claire is mysteriously no longer in her room, and at the fair, Fruit Fucker Prime is occupied, violating a building-sized orange against Mundo's will. After fighting through demon-possessed fairgoers, the team reaches the orange, where they do battle with Fruit Fucker Prime. They succeed in destroying its 'chute', but the god's essence within heals all damage rendered to its main components. As the four prepare for their deaths, Anne-Claire arrives piloting a giant robot of her own; a massive doll powered by a truck engine and Energite, wearing a Spider-Silk dress. Anne-Claire destroys Prime, Tycho and Gabe kill Mundo, and the Player retrieves the Necrowombicon. The narrator reads the third verse of the Quartet for the Dusk of Man.
After the credits, it is revealed that Dr. Blood is in fact, Dr. Raven Darktalon Blood, who took mortal form to seek out and destroy the Necrowombicon.
Development[edit | edit source]
Penny Arcade Adventures was officially announced on August 25, 2006. Robert Khoo, director of business relations at Penny Arcade stated that the Penny Arcade team decided to partner with Hothead Games because they felt the developer would produce content that would remain faithful to the feel of Penny Arcade. Khoo also stressed that Penny Arcade's creators would be involved in the development, from providing art to writing the story.[4] The in-game music was composed by Jeff Tymoschuk, with the song 'Final Boss' by MC Frontalot playing over the closing credits of Episode One. Episode Two's ending song is 'Some Things Man Was Not Meant to Know', by The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets.[5][6] Charles' indecision regarding when he would live in his apartment refers to similar indecision on Holkins's part about whether to introduce Charles in Episode Two (released mid-late Fall 2008) or Episode Three, which was expected to release in early spring 2009 at the time. During a Q&A session at PAX East 2010 on March 26, Holkins and Krahulik admitted that plans for production of Episode Three have been canceled, and that the ending of the story might be released in written form instead.[7] On December 21, 2009 Wired.com named Episode 3 number seven in their list of top ten Vaporware 2009.[8]
Reception[edit | edit source]
Episode 1[edit | edit source]
Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 1 | |
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Review scores | |
Publication | Score |
1UP.com | B[9] |
Computer and Video Games | 7.8/10[10] |
IGN | 7.8/10[11] |
Episode One has been modestly praised by reviewers. On the aggregate review sites Game Rankings and Metacritic, Penny Arcade Adventures garnered critic averages from 76 to 79%. Penny Arcade released statistics showing that their game ranked third best in launch sales on Xbox Live Marketplace, coming after Rez HD and Ikaruga.[12]
While the game's artistic style and humor have drawn approval (with Edge noting that the latter can be an acquired taste), critics have questioned whether the gameplay will be strong enough to drive a whole series of titles.[13][14]
Episode 2[edit | edit source]
Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 2 | |
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Review scores | |
Publication | Score |
1UP.com | B+[15] |
Episode 2 received similar reviews to the reviews of Episode 1, yet generated only one third of its sales.[16]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑Grant, Christopher (2007-08-25). PAX 07: Penny Arcade Adventures coming to XBLA. Joystiq. Retrieved on 2008-08-25
- ↑Penny Arcade Adventures coming to PlayStation Network
- ↑Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins (May 26, 2008). Game Q&A. Penny Arcade. Retrieved on 2008-05-30
- ↑Penny Arcade Video Game Announced - Breaking - Kotaku
- ↑Boyer, Brandon (August 25, 2006). Hothead, Penny Arcade Visit The Precipice of Darkness. Gamasutra. Retrieved on 2006-08-25
- ↑Tycho Brahe weighs in On The Rain Slick Precipice of Darkness. Joystiq (2008-05-21). Retrieved on 2008-05-21
- ↑Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness - Episode 3 has been cancelled
- ↑Calore, Michael (December 21, 2009). Vaporware 2009: Inhale the Fail. Wired. Retrieved on 2009-12-22
- ↑Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode 1 Review from 1UP.com
- ↑PC Review: Penny Arcade Adventures Episode One - ComputerAndVideoGames.com
- ↑IGN: Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness Review
- ↑More Game Stuff. Penny Arcade (2008-05-26). Retrieved on 2008-05-27
- ↑Cite error: Invalid
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- ↑Penny Arcade Adventures Episode One: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness (xbox360: 2008): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2008-05-29
- ↑Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode 2 (2008-10-29). Retrieved on 2008-10-29
- ↑Simon Carless (2009-03-25). GDC: Hothead Duo Talk DeathSpank, Indie Experience, Episodic Gaming Retreat. Gamasutra. Retrieved on 2009-12-30
External links[edit | edit source]
Retrieved from 'https://gamicus.gamepedia.com/index.php?title=Penny_Arcade_Adventures:_On_the_Rain-Slick_Precipice_of_Darkness&oldid=130247'
Private | |
Industry | Interactive entertainment |
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Founded | 2009 |
Founder | Robert Boyd, William Stiernberg |
Headquarters | Lake Arrowhead, California, United States |
Key people | Robert Boyd (Co-Owner), William 'Bill' Stiernberg (Co-Owner) |
Products | Epiphany in Spaaace!, Molly the Were-Zompire, Breath of Death VII, Cthulhu Saves the World, Cosmic Star Heroine |
2 | |
Website | zeboyd.com |
Zeboyd Games is a developer of 8-bit and 16-bit-style 2Drole-playing games that was created by Robert Boyd with William Stiernberg. It is most known for its two 2D role-playing games, Breath of Death VII and Cthulhu Saves the World. Most recently, they've developed and released the third and fourth installments of the Penny Arcade Adventures series, as well as the science fiction RPG Cosmic Star Heroine.[1]
- 1Interactive Novels
- 22D RPGs
Interactive Novels[edit]
Epiphany in Spaaace![edit]
Epiphany In Spaaace! is an interactive novel[2] released on October 20, 2009 on Xbox Live Indie Games[3] parodying sci-fi through the ongoing travails of Philemon K. Bort (possible Captain of the U.S.S. Epiphany, one of the latest additions to the Universal Galactic Space Corps fleet).[4] It has sold about 500-700 copies.[5]
Molly the Were-Zompire[edit]
The interactive novel Molly the Were-Zompire was released on Xbox Live Indie Games on December 10, 2009.[6] It's the story of Molly Desper, who is turned into a were-zombie-vampire[7] It sold about 500-700 copies.[5]
2D RPGs[edit]
Breath of Death VII: The Beginning[edit]
Co-created with William Stiernberg, Breath of Death VII: The Beginning was released on April 22, 2010, on Xbox Live Indie Games.[8] A retro-style comedy RPG, Dem the Skeleton Knight, Sara the Ghost Historian, Lita the Vampire Techie, and Erik the Zombie Prince are customized via a branching ability tree.[9] Robert felt that most turn-based RPGs were too slow, so Breath of Death VII battles employ a combo system based on player character choices with non-player characters receiving a strength bonus based on how many turns the fight has gone, giving the battles a pseudo time limit.[10] Additionally, the number of encounters in an area are limited.[11] With more than 40,000 sales, Breath of Death VII has a 2/3 conversion rate from the trial.[10]
Despite its title, it is the only game of its 'series', and the previous 'six' do not exist. The title is simply a parody of serial RPGs whose sequels are often not in chronological order.
Cthulhu Saves the World[edit]
Co-created with Bill Stiernberg, Cthulhu Saves the World was released on December 30, 2010 on Xbox Live.[12]Cthulhu, the squid-faced, winged god created by H. P. Lovecraft emerges from the sea after centuries of slumber only to find his dark powers immediately sealed away by a mysterious holy wizard. A narrator then informs the player that the only way to break the curse is to become a true hero. Quickly breaking the fourth wall, Cthulhu informs the narrator that he was eavesdropping and now knows how to break the curse.[13] Like Breath of Death VII, Cthulhu Saves the World has a branching level-up system and caps random encounters in an area (there is an option where the player can choose from the menu to have additional encounters).[14] The 'Hey There, Cthulhu' music video was produced by Nakatomi HMC[15] using the parody song written and recorded by Eben Brooks.[citation needed] All in-game music was composed and recorded by Gordon McNeil.[16]
Zeboyd Games began a Kickstarter fundraiser towards development of an enhanced version of the game for PC and Xbox 360 platforms; it was more than successfully funded on February 16, 2011, garnering over twice the fundraiser's goal. The new version was officially announced on March 14, 2011, retitling the game as 'Cthulhu Saves the World: Super Hyper Enhanced Championship Edition Alpha Diamond DX Plus Alpha FES HD - Premium Enhanced Game of the Year Collector's Edition (without Avatars!)'. The PC version was released on July 13, 2011 together with Breath of Death VII on Valve's Steam service. The Steam version was a financial success, making more revenue in its first week of release than in a year and a half on the Xbox 360.[17] By November 21, 2011, the 'Zeboyd Games Combo Pack' (Cthulhu Saves the World & Breath of Death VII) had sold over 100,000 copies on Steam in less than four months after release.[18]
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode 3[edit]
Zeboyd Games developed Episode 3 of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness,[1][19] which was released on June 25, 2012. Robert Boyd and Bill Stiernberg, along with Jerry Holkins and Jeff Kalles, hosted a panel at PAX East in Boston on April 6, 2012.[20]
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode 4[edit]
Zeboyd Games developed Episode 4, which was released on June 7, 2013.
Cosmic Star Heroine[edit]
Cosmic Star Heroine is a science fiction RPG and was released in April 2017 for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4. A Nintendo Switch version later followed. It received positive reviews.[21][22]
References[edit]
- ^ ab'Zeboyd Games Resurrects Penny Arcade Adventures'. RPGamer.com. 2012. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^'Epiphany in Spaaace! Review'. Go!GamingGiant. 28 Oct 2009. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Full Game - Epiphany in Spaaace!'. Xbox Live. 20 Oct 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Epiphany in Spaaace!'. Metacritic. 20 Oct 2009. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^ ab'RPGamer Feature - Breath of Death VII: The Beginning Interview'. RPGamer. Apr 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Full Game - Molly the Were-Zompire'. Xbox Live. 10 Dec 2009. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Review: Molly the Were-Zompire'. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Full Game - Breath of Death VII'. Xbox Live. 22 Apr 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Breath of Death VII Released For XBLA:This retro parody RPG is dying for your support'. RPGFan.com. 29 Apr 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^ ab'Interview: Zeboyd Games Creator Shares 3 Secrets of Good RPG Design'. bitmob.com. 6 Jul 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Hidden Xbox Games You Need To Know About'. Kotaku. 31 May 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Full Game - Cthulhu Saves the World'. Xbox Live. 30 Dec 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Xbox Live Indie Gems: Cthulhu Saves the World'. Joystiq. 6 Jan 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Cthulhu Saves the World Review'. Eurogamer. 11 Jan 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Nakatomi HMC Videos'. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Indie Developer Pow-Wow - Cthulhu Saves the World Interview'. rpgamer.com. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ^'Zeboyd PC Sales Leave XBLIG In The Dust'. 20 July 2011. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
- ^'Cthulhu Saves the World bundle sells over 100,000 copies on Steam in less than 4 months'. 21 November 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
- ^Rossignol, Jim. Zeboyd Are On the Rain-Slick Precipice rockpapershotgun.com. Retrieved 2012-03-04
- ^PAX East Schedule. Penny Arcade Expo. Retrieved 2012-03-04
- ^'Cosmic Star Heroine for PS4 Reviews'Metacritic, Retrieved 2 August 2017
- ^'Cosmic Star Heroine for PC Reviews'Metacritic, Retrieved 2 August 2017
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zeboyd_Games&oldid=925812622'