Penny Arcade Adventures storms XBLA on May 21st

by Dustin Burg { May 13th 2008 at 12:30PM }

Just because we know you haven't already had enough Microsoft Spring Showcase announcements, we thought we'd pass along word that Penny Arcade's (deep breath) Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode 1 has now been confirmed to release onto the XBLA next Wednesday, May 21st. Phew! The semi-bad news is that this little Penny Arcade gem will cost a whopping 1600 Microsoft points, which is guaranteed to cause a lot of people's reaction to be something along the lines of "ouch!" or "no-way!" Though, we expect true Penny Arcade fans to unanimously agree that the $20 is worth every penny (pun intended) to experience a Gabe and Tycho featured episodic RPG. Check the new screens below.

Gallery: Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness (XBLA)

Tags: gamers-day-08, hot-head-games, penny-arcade, penny-arcade-adventures, spring-showcase-08, xbla

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

ogvor @ May 13th 2008 12:43PM

I honestly always expected it to be 20$,and so long as it's good, I'm not complaining.

AnOffday @ May 13th 2008 12:51PM

1600? Holy crap. No thanks.

PJH @ May 13th 2008 1:32PM

I'm a long-time Penny Arcade fan, and I just have to say that $20 seems a bit absurd and frankly is kind of anti-Tycho and Gabe. I know the guys need to make a living, but I doubt they'll get any of my cash on this one.

ZEBRA NINER @ May 13th 2008 12:55PM

Yeah, the price tag was mentioned last month. Seems a little steep, but they ensure it will offer much more than a standard arcade game.

I think that's all good, however it could set a precedent for $20 being the norm, even for games that shouldn't cost that much. Next up, Bliss Island 2! Only 1600 MS points!

xenocidic @ May 13th 2008 1:01PM

I'm not worried about the price tag, I'll just consider it "back pay" for all the years of laughter penny arcade comics have given me, but this one will probably have to wait. I'm still playing GTA IV.

Mark @ May 13th 2008 1:11PM

The comics draw you to the site where they get revenue from advertising. You've already paid for the laughter by putting up with the ads on their site.

emirabal @ May 13th 2008 6:36PM

I dont agree about the ads, its not like they were inthe way like a website like...i dont know....360fanboy..those guys are real bad putting ads all over the place, geez, but yeah, ive been reading their comics since 99 and i have to say i am real happy to been on this train and expect good things from this game. Ill drop the 20 cash.

Mark @ May 13th 2008 7:03PM

You don't agree that you've paid for the content you've seen when you viewed the ads? So you feel the need to pay a television network for viewing their program after you sat through all the commercials too?

dramamoose @ May 14th 2008 12:50AM

Well, for those of us with the Fox+AdBlock, we haven't paid our "advertising" fee.
I bought the penny arcade books a few months ago, and they've provided me with a large amount of enjoyment. I don't have a problem with the pricetag, but I am a little bit surprised that our favorite gamer/writer/artist duo would price it this high.

ccc @ May 13th 2008 1:07PM

I never liked this and fail to see what others see in it.

a 20 dollar price tag is very dangerous in terms of what is to come for the arcade.

If they are charging 20 for this what do you think Soul Caliber with no online play and Quake 3 arena without mouse and kb support is gonna cost?

Although I care little for this title I will check it out when it is available as I know very little about Penny Arcade, and bottom line is a good game is a good game but, come on MS, 20 bucks?!

Mark @ May 13th 2008 1:09PM

I think it's funny that they complained about the prices of other DLC and now release the most expensive XBLA game to date. I wonder if they'll write a strip complaining about their own game.

ManicBomber @ May 13th 2008 3:24PM

That's my thought. They whined and cried about the cost of things on the arcade (even back when they already had what like 3 of the most expensive themes and picture packs on the arcade?) and now they are going to release the most expensive game.

Craig @ May 13th 2008 1:31PM

1600 points isn't bad for this type of episodic content. My question is, if it is being distributed as part of XBLA does it fit into the file size limit? I find it a little hard to believe it does if Street Fighter was having trouble. If it doesn't fit could it just be distributed via Marketplace like demos currently are, and not specifically XBLA?

Vern @ May 13th 2008 1:51PM

I never played any penny arcade, but i am willing to indulge myself in them they look really really good and funny so 20 bucks ain't that bad. (although i can't put GTAIV down....lol)

Tony @ May 13th 2008 1:56PM

$20 isn't really that nuts, when you get down to it. I think XBLA has created this situation where people just won't pay more than $10 for any downloadable game... and frankly, that's not really sustainable. There's a reason many of these same XBLA games are $20 on PC and it's not because they love us.

psyborg @ May 13th 2008 2:22PM

Does this mean were not getting Bionic Commando tomarrow?

Andrew @ May 13th 2008 3:22PM

Ugh....seems to me like there's some hypocrisy in this thread....Every time an 800 point game hits the arcade everybody bitches and moans....

Jedimonkey @ May 13th 2008 4:59PM

$20 per episode? That's rather steep. As much as I love PA, I find it difficult to pony up that amount. As people have said, $20 per episode multiplied by 3 episodes is $60...which as we all know is the normal price for a RETAIL game. Maybe if they bundled the episodes together and gave you a discount, this would be a smart purchase...