Overall I’d rate this a 3.8 out of 5. I really enjoy it and it’s fun. $20 isn’t a lot of money but it is only 7hrs of game play and replay factor likely won’t be high. That being said I do look forward to the next episode and I’ll go back through this one at least a couple times waiting for it to come out. It is a great example of a game that was created with a clear vision and doesn’t feel like huge sacrifices had to be made to get there.

This is the game created by the minds at Penny Arcade. It’s an RPG style kind of game where you run around 3/4 view exploring an area and battling monsters. Your team consists of a character you create and as well as Gabe and Tycho, plus you have some supporting characters that you rely on for other things, like Tycho’s Niece to upgrade your equipment for example.The game takes place in the 1922’s where your team is investigate supernatural occurrences of the Penny Arcade variety. The main story has your trio trying to find out where a Giant Robot has come from (Fruit Fucker Prime) and stop it. Along the way you’ll be battling regular Fruit Fuckers, Mimes, Hobo’s, Trash Cans and various other oddities.

The dialogue in the story will feel vary familiar to any Penny Arcade fans as it’s almost entirely written by Tycho and the artwork is, I think, an amazingly well done cell shaded Penny Arcade vision. It’s very much like playing through Penny Arcade strips that have come to life. I personally find the graphics fantastic and tie in with the dialogue perfectly and for me just wandering around in the world is purchase enough for me. But I’m a huge PA fan and well I can’t get enough.

The game play is a point click mode familiar to most 3/4 RPG settings. You’ll walk around clicking on various objects to uncover clues, power ups and special bonus items (concept sketches, movie clips, records…). Encounters are all fixed locations so you’ll see when you are approaching the monsters, though it may not always be obvious. The levels themselves are split up into cells, basically and the transitions from place to place work well.

The combat engine goes into a phase based engine. Each character, and monster has an initiative clock that fills up and when it’s full you can do an action. You select an action click a target and the attack goes off. There are also special attacks that will have you doing various little mini-games to make the special attack work. It’s not my favorite combat system of this variety but it does work well and it’s far from the worse. The combats thus far have felt frantic and well paced and the challenge level feels pretty good and the special attack mini-games are a nice diversion. Also word of note, don’t be stingy with your items. There are plenty scattered around the world and are easy to refresh. Oh, almost forgot there is also a blocking mechanic that actually adds quite a bit to the combat engine as you learn the various timings of your enemies. Used correctly it has a huge impact on your success. With all going on combats do feel happily frantic. Again not my favorite, but it works and so far hasn’t grown stagnant. It’s also not point click kill, there is skill involved and strategy.

Each battle gives you XP, gather enough your character levels up and gets a stat bump. Special attacks at the right time give you an Overkill bonus that will also improve your game. Various collectibles in the game can be used to upgrade your characters weapons. Also as you level up you learn new special attacks. It’s not a very in depth system, there are no skills for example, but it’s still rewarding and gives a good sense of accomplishment.

For me I think it’s a fantastic little game and I’m looking forward to episode two. For rpg fans and Penny Arcade fans I think for the $20 it costs to get this game you’ll definitely find enjoyment here and get your money’s worth. For others if you hate PA, don’t enjoy semi-turned based 3/4 rpg’s then you’ll likely already know to stay away from it and I can’t blame you.

It’s a game that definitely won’t be for everyone. But it’s not a comment on the quality of the game, as it is a very sound game in terms of the graphics, the story and the engine itself. The real statement is more to if it’s for your niche.

I should mention, it’s available for Windows, OSX, Linux and XBLA (xbox360 live arcade), which is something very few companies are willing to do.

Overall I’d rate this a 3.8 out of 5. I really enjoy it and it’s fun. $20 isn’t a lot of money but it is only 7hrs of game play and replay factor likely won’t be high. That being said I do look forward to the next episode and I’ll go back through this one at least a couple times waiting for it to come out. It is a great example of a game that was created with a clear vision and doesn’t feel like huge sacrifices had to be made to get there.

Those of you who have been here before are likely aware there can be extended periods between updates. This time, I have a “good” reason for it. I am the victim of a laptop issue. I honestly don’t know what’s going on, but I do have a temporary workaround. If you have any technical knowledge at all, read my blog and let me know if you have an answer to my dilemma.

I’ll be back once I figure this out.