Hothead Games today punched its rambling epic,
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode One (phew!), with a $19.95 price tag. That's just over 30 cents a letter (colons not included), assuming cost is derived, as it is for all episodic games, by the title's
length. Currently, that price applies to all versions of the game, which include PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox Live Arcade editions. 1600 Microsoft Points ($20) would be new territory for digital distribution on Xbox 360, but clearly,
Hothead and its two stars have made it a point to be living on the edge.
PC, Mac and Linux specs are posted after the break.
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Minimum System Requirements
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Recommended Configuration
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Operating System
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Windows and Linux
- Windows® 2000/XP/VistaTM with latest updates or Linux® 32-bit x86
- Pentium® III, AMD AthlonTM 1.0 GHz or better
Mac
- Mac® OS X 10.4/10.5 with latest updates
- PowerPC® G4, G5 or Intel® based Mac 1.0 GHz or better
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Windows and Linux
- Pentium® IV, AMD AthlonTM 1.5 GHz or better
Mac
- PowerPC® G4, G5 or Intel® based Mac 1.5 GHz or better
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All Platforms
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- ATI RadeonTM 9500 or better, NVIDIA GeForceTM FX 5200 or better, Intel® GMA 950 or better with 64 MB of video memory (shared or dedicated)*
- 512 MB of available system memory
- OS-supported keyboard and mouse
- OS-supported sound card
- 350 MB of available hard drive space (185 MB installed)
- Available Internet connection for download and one-time authentication
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- ATI RadeonTM X800 or better, NVIDIA GeForceTM 6600 or better video card with 128 MB of video memory*
- 768 MB of available system memory
- 16-bit stereo- or surround-capable sound card with latest drivers
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*All Windows- and Linux-based system video cards require latest drivers supporting OpenGL®.
{ Mar 27th 2008 at 4:15PM } 
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Pitrsin @ Mar 27th 2008 4:20PM
3 cents a letter? It's under 2 dollars? Sweet.
cjshrader @ Mar 27th 2008 4:29PM
And then they correct it and make you look the fool. But I saw it. I'll not let them hide this story. THEY MADE A TYPE AND YOU CAUGHT IT. WE WILL NOT FORGET
cjshrader @ Mar 27th 2008 4:29PM
And then I type "type" instead of "typo." Irony?
Kevin @ Mar 27th 2008 4:57PM
Hooray for math!
$19.95 / 64 letters = $0.312 / letter!
/totally gonna buy that
Jerk Face @ Mar 27th 2008 4:20PM
I am finding myself pretty damned excited for this game. It is getting some good buzz from those who have previewed it.
Chase @ Mar 27th 2008 4:21PM
I will be getting this not just to support Penny Arcade, which I love, but because it actually looks good and fun.
WiNG @ Mar 27th 2008 4:25PM
Prediction: This game is overhyped.
Prediction: This game will have hilarious dialog.
Sengoku @ Mar 27th 2008 4:47PM
Looks like they are looking to abuse their fanbase by making as much as possible off of their game. Thanks, but I'll pass.
Autopsy15 @ Mar 27th 2008 5:37PM
Jesus Christ kid, you think $20 is expensive? Compare that to some of the shittiest games that come out to day for 50-60 bucks a pop. If you think $20 is unreasonable or "making as much as possible" then your either dirt poor or an idiot. If they wanted to make as much as possible then they'd sell it for $60, dumbass.
Sengoku @ Mar 27th 2008 5:54PM
$20 is expensive for an XBLA game. I'm not dirt poor, but you sure talk like you are. Just another typical 12 year old foul-mouthed XBL user... didn't I play against you in Halo 3?
Roofie @ Mar 27th 2008 4:31PM
Wow. I'm really surprised that it's going to cost $20, although it's a justifiable price (but not for the reason given in the post).
I played with it a bit at PAX, and it's a fun game, but I'm going to hold off and wait for a price drop (that will hopefully come).
Dale @ Mar 27th 2008 5:52PM
It's not a roofie, it's a Forget-Me-Now.
Dustin @ Mar 27th 2008 4:34PM
I don't think that this game is overhyped at all... Come on. It's Penny Arcade. It's an action-adventure-RPG...thing. Just like Penny Arcade! It's going to be hilarious. And you can create a customized character.
It's a recipe for success. And ya - A lot of other games have been a recipe for success and turned out to be nasty, but does anyone really think that Tycho and Gabe would let someone f^ck up their game? I doubt it.
MasterInsan0 @ Mar 27th 2008 6:17PM
Actually, yeah, I do think Gabe and Tycho would let someone mess up their game. They are many things, but they are not game designers. This doesn't mean that they are incapable of creating a good game, it just means they are less likely to do so.
That said, I am looking forward to this game. Either it'll be a decent game and they'll keep making them, or it'll be an awful game and serve as fodder for their comics. Either way, we win.
iFester @ Mar 27th 2008 4:34PM
Methinks the $20 would be spent on a 120g HDD for my 360 first. I have a feeling this will take a bit of space. With episodic content to boot. Hmm... PC version perhaps.
Autopsy15 @ Mar 27th 2008 5:32PM
Ya, $20 then another $160. Xbox360's hard drive is laughably, ridiculously expensive.
nutman @ Mar 27th 2008 4:35PM
Im not buying it now. $15 is the max I would spend on it.
Grim Santo @ Mar 27th 2008 4:39PM
Not really new territory for XBL, Bankshot Billiards 2 was also priced at 1600 MS points when it launch.
mrlogical @ Mar 27th 2008 4:38PM
This is episodic, right? Do we know how many episodes? Because if there are going to be any more than 3, $20 per episode is a fairly absurd price. Hopefully they'll do something like Telltale, offering an option to pay for the whole season at a discount. If there are 4 or 5 episodes, $100 to complete the story would be nuts.
GaryM @ Mar 27th 2008 4:43PM
$20? So that averages out to $10 per joke.
Markusdragon @ Mar 27th 2008 5:48PM
And $DIVIDE BY ZERO ERROR per punchline.
Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force) @ Mar 27th 2008 4:43PM
You know, Games for Windows initiative was supposed to remove all those recommended settings and such and make it nice and simple. Case in point? Company of Heroes is 1.0, Crysis is 4.2, my machine is 5.5.
Wasn't the point of Games for Windows to get rid of these charts?
mike @ Mar 27th 2008 5:09PM
well that doesnt work because Im using onboard video which is great for HD playback and the rest of my system is top tier, so im rated a 5.3 or something like that. But because of my video card, I cant play anything even as good as doom 3. So those simple numbers dont work like that.
Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force) @ Mar 27th 2008 5:50PM
The numbers take your lowest score. Example? My hard drive is 5400rpm, that's where the 5.5 comes from. If you go under your computer settings, you can see how the numbers rate in four areas. So they COULD simply say "requires 6.2 Graphics or higher"
Jackson @ Mar 28th 2008 1:22AM
Crysis reads at 4.2? That's strange, mine says a solid 5.0.
And I'd have to say, I find the GfW numbering system a little lacking...it doesn't really give you any indication of what the game will tax more heavily, which is useful info.
Games for Windows tried hard, it really did, but I don't find myself using any of its vaunted features--especially the LIVE integration. Never got that working on Halo 2.
THE WICKER MAN (BWF) (GT: Dalek Prime) @ Mar 27th 2008 4:50PM
I can have now?
Jfk Aok @ Mar 27th 2008 4:59PM
The only joke in this game are the consumers that will be dumb enough to buy it...and at that price point!? Really!? ...Wow.
Take some icons from a mostly meh, sometimes clever, always shallow, and never transcending comic and make a lame Rpg that has nothing to do with anything out of it! Cha-ching.
Gaming Nerds = Consumer Whores
This formula is true, but it's true because of you. You can, in fact, change things with your wallets.
MasterInsan0 @ Mar 27th 2008 6:28PM
Wow. I'm not sure I've ever seen such high amounts of idiocy outside of 4chan memes.
RoboChamp @ Mar 27th 2008 5:00PM
Hold on, are we seeing this hit the PS3?
Yuccadude @ Mar 27th 2008 5:12PM
Tags: Mac, PC, Xbox 360.
Sorry, but it doesn't look like it.
why not the LS2/LS7? @ Mar 27th 2008 6:24PM
Nope. Ridiculous, eh?
Mac: yes.
PS3: nope.
RoboChamp @ Mar 27th 2008 6:39PM
That's fucking bullshit. I honestly wanted to play their game. It's a real shame they're ignoring PSN like that. As if it was 2007 still.
Shane @ Mar 27th 2008 9:04PM
Wow how bad is that. This game is comming out on Linux but not he PS3 lol.
2bit gamer @ Mar 27th 2008 5:05PM
I think Oblivion's expansion: Shivering Isles cost more (30USD) and came out sooner (last year some time) than this Penny Arcade game on XBLA.
I'm sure you could confirm this on XBLA marketplace quickly. I don't have and 360, I can't myself.
http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/rpg/elderscrollsivshiveringisles/news.html?sid=6166936
Oh. and as Grim pointed out, that billards game came out at the same price point as well.
I don't think it's a big deal, but I think it's a mistake to speak as though this is a signicant shift on XBLA.
In fact, I'm all for it. I'd love to see, say, the chopped up bits of Orange Box offered up on XBLA for 20-30USD (whatever the price is on steam)
Jfk Aok @ Mar 27th 2008 5:14PM
I agree that it isn't a shift, or at least isn't a shift yet. But, I can't agree that it isn't a big deal. Just because someone else sells a game that isn't AAA (or even close to a decent B level product) for AAA prices, doesn't mean it should be done now or in the future.
As a few others before me mentioned, this is a way of milking a fanbase. And sadly, because gamer nerds and their "culture" are total consumer whores, they'll eat this up like it's some kind of fan service. The irony is delicious.
darkandlong @ Mar 27th 2008 5:12PM
$20 for something they want to make episodic? Screw that.
2bit gamer @ Mar 27th 2008 5:38PM
What's wrong with 20 for episodic content? That's how much Half Life 2 episodes have cost up to this point at retail and on steam.
Joystiq's C. Grant said he'd pay full price 60USD for Portal like games. I think that's a bit extreme, but games like the psp God of War and Metal Gear Solid 1 make a good argument for quality of quantity.
As I get older (and have less time to play games) and as games take longer and longer to develop, I think high quality (with attendent price) episodic games aren't a bad proposition.
Final note: if three of these episodes add up to the an acceptable length for a standard priced game, why shouldn't the price also be a 1/3?
Friends, let's point our cannons at EA and the chicanery that it's trying to pull with Bad Company.
Spekkio @ Mar 27th 2008 5:38PM
well they have to make some sort of profit so they can make more episodes later.
jamie.sichel @ Mar 27th 2008 5:44PM
Episodic does not mean you pay $20 per episode. You pay $20 for the initial game - episodes, just like patches, build off of what you already own. They'll be much cheaper than your initial purchase, no doubt (most likely $5-$10), depending on how often episodes are released.
I'm stoked. I rarely buy games for any computer platform, but I have a feeling I'll be breaking that streak with this game.
superberg @ Mar 27th 2008 5:50PM
My laptop meets every requirement, save the video card(Radeon 9200, 32 MB RAM).
Man, I need a new computer soooooo badly. Gotta keep saving those pennies...
Mal F4cti0n @ Mar 27th 2008 5:57PM
"Hothead and its two stars have made it a point to be living on the edge."
Ha, cuz the name of the game. I get jokes!
kimfidler @ Mar 27th 2008 6:03PM
$20 is a steal for this game.
I don't really see why people complain so much about the pricing on XBLA. Puzzle Quest is 1200 points yet it offers much more value than some of the garbage you can pick up at retail for $60.
While I'll probably wait until some reviews hit, I'm pretty positive this will be a Day 1 purchase for me.
KrazyIan @ Mar 27th 2008 6:14PM
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned that this is coming out for Linux. When was the last time you heard of a PC game that would support Linux?
Acceptable Risk @ Mar 27th 2008 7:25PM
Unreal Tournament has always had Linux support. I understand UT3 doesn't have a Linux binary yet, but they say it's coming.
Jeff @ Mar 27th 2008 8:31PM
So 4 years?
Thanks for the answer acceptable.
Lorben @ Mar 27th 2008 7:18PM
For those of you complaining about the price, what exactly are you comparing this too? Half-Life 2 Episode Two is $30. Sin Episode One (from 2006) is $15. Penumbra: Overture is $20. The only really cheap new episodic games I can think of it Sam & Max at $9 an episode, but those are only worth 1-3 hours of gameplay. Now if this game only lasts 1-3 hours, then you can start feeling ripped off.
Spaniard0069 @ Mar 27th 2008 8:00PM
Twenty Dolla's!? Good Lord, thats a lotta money.
Deck @ Mar 27th 2008 8:03PM
Can't wait! I love my 360, but I'll be picking it up on the PC. Especially considering its not demanding at all!
Jeff @ Mar 27th 2008 8:31PM
Don't think I'd buy this for over $10. That's my limit for games that look interesting, but that I don't take seriously. =/
andy @ Mar 27th 2008 10:26PM
If I remember correctly this game will have about 8-9 hours of game play,depending on the player of course. 20 dollars for 8 hours of game play?
I vote yes! Also considering how good this game looks. . . I will gladly support independent developers by paying $20.
Also I cannot wait to play this. . . sigh.