By a rather large margin, Penny Arcade's "The Unhorse" took the top spot in this week's webcomic wrapup. And we're sure all those voters were rooting for the horse, right? Right?

Second and third places go to Fanboys and Digital Unrest, respectively. Thanks to everyone who voted, and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomics you stumble upon this week!

In news post yesterday, Penny Arcade's Gabe revealed the top four best launches ever for Xbox Live Arcade, with the launch window being the first three days of availability. The list is as follows:

1. Rez HD, 25k units
2. Ikaruga, 22.5k units
3. Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 1, 16.5k units
4. N+, 13k units

Honestly, we're a bit surprised by the initial success of Rez and Ikaruga. Not that we didn't want them to succeed (they really are awesome games), but we didn't expect to see Xbox Live community rally so quickly around years-old re-releases. Now, if we could only see data for worst XBLA launches, or even total Rez playtime using multiple controllers as trance vibrators.

[Via X3F]

The unique experiment of Penny Arcade Adventures has already begun in earnest. The long-term question in the making -- "Can game comic-makers make a videogame?" -- is moot. On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is now available via Xbox Live and the Greenhouse website (with demos here: Windows, Mac and Linux). The question now becomes: What do the creators think of their spawn? We sat down with Jerry "Tycho" Holkins, Penny Arcade's writer-in-residence, to get some perspective on that very issue.

We had the chance to discuss a number of the game's elements -- from the origins of the Startling Developments Detective Agency to the foul creation of the evil bums. Mr. Holkins also shed a dim light on future episodes in the series as we discussed the music and writing that surround the overarching story. We also clarified that for Penny Arcade, as a creative team, there is no rest. Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins are not celebrating today, they're not patting themselves on the back. Instead, they're returning to what they do best: working.

Read on to find out why these guys are driven to mine the funny for your benefit.

Yes, we wrote "fruit lover" in the headline, but you all know its real, alliterative name. Game Videos has posted more footage from the impending Penny Arcade Adventures: On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. This time we're taken to a factory where workers produce the produce-supportive robot as the gang face off against a quartet of humans and diminutive machines.

The video is embedded after the break, although you might want to skip ahead to the battles (we recommend the high resolution version if you want to read the dialog). Also, for those who might have reacted negatively to the previous footage from this week (a good number of commenters expressed dismay), Gabe wrote a post on Penny Arcade expressing his confidence in the title. Sure, there's some obvious bias, but the duo is largely known for its reputation, and we have faith they wouldn't support it if there was a sign of sub-par quality.

Even if we're a little late with giving you the results, this week's webcomic wrapup wasn't really a contest. Due to its timeliness and the controversy surrounding the situation, Penny Arcade's "The New Games Journalism" takes top honors this week. Timeliness is an understatement, here: we know a lot of people who first discovered Gerstmann-Gate from this comic.

Second place goes to 2P Start while third is a virtual tie between Dueling Analogs and WoW Insider. Thanks to everyone who voted, and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomics you stumble upon this week!

Plenty of review outlets have given Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed extremely favorable scores -- GamePro, GameSpot, GameTrailers, and Game Informer all scored the game at 90/100 or better. However, certain outlets found the game less appealing, and judged it as a 70/100 -- 1UP, EuroGamer, and GameSpy -- and Penny-Arcade's Gabe isn't buying what they're selling.

"If Assassin's Creed actually was a 7.0 game I'd tell you," said Gabe in Wednesday's news post. "I also want you to know that when I tell you it's fucking incredible I'm not bullshitting you because we're running ads for the game." He then goes on to comment specifically on the complaints he's read in various reviews:

Curses, Tycho and Gabe, now we really wish Assassin's Crossing was real. It would be so much fun. The duo's Penny Arcade strip from last week, "The Littlest Hashshashin" took top honors in this week's webcomic wrapup, likely for the second frame alone. (We're not going to spoil it, just click the link yourself and find out.)

Second and third place go to 2P Start and Awkward Zombie, respectively. Thanks to everyone who voted, and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomic you stumble upon this week!

Is that two month old PAX07 t-shirt started to look slightly worn or wrinkled? (If so, may we recommend occasionally wearing other clothing.) Save the date and start booking your flight for Seattle, as the dates for the 5th annual Penny Arcade Expo have been unveiled: August 29 through 31, 2008.

This year's event drew in approximately 37,000 attendees into the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. According to the press release (PDF file), "attendance for the 2008 event is expected to reach forty-seven million bajillion people." A venue for the 2008 expo was not specified; exhibitor packets are now available and attendee registration opens in January.

Okay, folks, you can now officially start placing your bets on what will be next year's Omegathon.

Sure, the BioShock edition of the webcomic wrapup was last week, but that didn't stop voters making ADAM-fueled decisions in their artistic preferences this week. At the top of the splicer heap, we have Penny Arcade's "To Catch a Predator: Rapture Edition"

Second place goes to Fanboys and Ctrl+Alt+Del takes third. Thanks to everyone who voted and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomics you stumble upon this week!

The exhibitor list for this year's Penny Arcade Expo has been made, checked twice, and finalized. While the past exhibitors are all still present (including favorites Pink Godzilla), the major publishers have signed up en masse.

Joining Nintendo and Microsoft this year on the super-sized list of 53 exhibitors are Sony, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Sierra and Konami, among many others. Indie representation will be provided Gamecock, Telltale, and more. Is that the shadow of E3 we see before us? Full list after the break.

It's the picture that sells it, really, and presentation can be just as important in a webcomic as content. Despite the usual, numerous objections in the comment section, Scott Ramsoomair's VG Cats strip took the top spot as the week's best webcomic.

Coming in second place was the second Penny Arcade strip, "Retreat to the Citadel," (we favored the first strip, ourselves) while third place went to Ctrl+Alt+Del. Thanks to everyone who voted and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomics you stumble upon this week!

Phew, that was close. And to think, he almost discovered our master plans ...

Infamous Miami lawyer Jack Thompson has thoroughly revised his complaint and counterclaim against Take Two. Concerning his counterclaim, Thompson shortened it from nearly 20 pages to a single paragraph that makes no mention of previous racketeering charges that listed Penny Arcade, the ESA, Joystiq, Kotaku and others as collaborators and conspirators.

Of course, Joystiq was left unaware what racketeering really was, having ignored Denis McCauley's thorough explanation for enlightenment via Tycho and Gabe's funny pictures.

In light of this pseudo-victory, Joystiq is celebrating with cake, ice cream and engaging in illegal business activities usually associated with organized crime.

Ever since Too Human got savaged by the press for sporting a decidedly wonky framerate at E3 2006, Silicon Knights frontman, Denis Dyack, has been somewhat frigid towards the issue of unfinished games and the media's ability to influence opinion based on early code. Not too long ago, the first part in the sci-fi action trilogy emerged from a "very cold place," hoping to set things back on track and get people to focus on all the good things that were, perhaps unfairly, overlooked in favor of counting the number of frames per second. The Penny Arcade duo has discussed (some would say dissed) the game several times in the past, most recently posting a comic literally illustrating the dangers of revealing premature products.

Dyack has continued the trend by posting his own modified Penny Arcade strip on his IGN blog, taking a jab at the generally unfavorable reaction to Gabe and Tycho's upcoming foray into interactivity. With the greener shoe now on the other end of the turning tables (or something along those lines), it becomes clear that presenting your unfinished game to the public is a tricky business indeed. Perhaps that's too serious a tone to end on considering Dyack's amusing contribution, but it's an interesting dilemma nonetheless.

How do you convey the big picture in a cursory glance? When do you show too much and when do you show too little?

[Thanks, Adam]

It takes guts to admit something good about a company who you've lost faith in so long ago. That's just what the Penny Arcade crew tackled in their strip relating to the recent PlayStation 3 announcements, winning best game-related webcomic of the week. Special thanks to Jerry "Tycho" Holkins, who was kind enough to stop for a quick chat at GDC last week.

Second place goes to the comic we were most tipped off to, the Perry Bible Fellowship, and third place was claimed by Extra Life.

A note about Tip of the Sword. While we thought the MMO joke was funny, we really loved the Halo gag more. Unfortunately, we were of the mindset that we picked that strip last week -- blame it on the jet lag from GDC. Apologies to Auker for not using the comic he submitted. Still, we thought the MMO one was funny.

Thanks to everyone who voted, and be sure to let us know of any gaming comics you stumble upon this week!

Before we get with the post, a note of thanks to all the commenters that, until this morning at least, were very civil and kind in their discussion of this week's webcomic wrapup.
Sure, we've all thought about the dirty things Wario would make us do if Smooth Moves was not an all-ages Nintendo title. VG Cats' Scott Ramsoomair makes the latest crack on the joke and takes top titles.

Second place goes to the Penny Arcade Sony satires, while third was apprehended by Scott Johnson of Extra Life.

Thanks to everyone who voted, and be sure to let us know of any gaming comics you stumble upon this week!