Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness Interview

Penny Arcade has been one of internet publishing’s greatest success stories. The online comic that documents the daily life of two video game nerds courts huge numbers of readers and has met with widespread critical acclaim, so it is only natural that a video game would follow. Pro-G chatted to Joel De Young, Chief Operating Officer at Hothead Games, about the intriguing new adventure game.

Pro-G: How will the adventure gameplay work? Can we expect a traditional point ‘n’ click interface?

De Young: It will feature traditional point and click adventure play reminiscent of classics like the Monkey Island series. So the player progressively reveals the story by solving various problems, and interacts with characters through a non-linear dialogue system.

Pro-G: And what about the RPG-combat elements? They sound far from typical for this type of game.

De Young: The RPG gameplay is inspired by old-school 16-bit era games of the genre. It uses real-time initiative to regulate the flow of combat, and there are a few added twists on the way the attacks work that keep things interesting for the player.

Pro-G: Can you explain the 1920’s alternate Penny Arcade universe, and why the game was not set in the usual Penny Arcade world?

De Young: In short, because having two guys sitting on a couch talking about video games doesn’t make for great gameplay. I think there are a number of alternate-setting stories that Gabe and Tycho want to tell, so this game provides the perfect vehicle for one of those ideas.

Pro-G: Having the legendary Monkey Island creator Ron Gilbert on-board must have been fantastic. What was his input and how has he contributed?

De Young: Working with Ron has been awesome. He is advising us on the scope and complexity of the adventure gameplay, and is also really good at understanding the role of humour in games.

Pro-G: And how involved have Penny Arcade’s illustrator Mike Krahulik and writer Jerry Holkins been in the development process?

De Young: Mike and Jerry are working directly on the game. Mike has drawn all the character and environment concepts, and has inked a lot of the final 2D elements in the game. Jerry wrote the story and has authored all the dialogue. At this point in development we’re in daily contact with both of them.

Pro-G: The game has been pitched in places as an ‘interactive Penny Arcade comic’. How do these customisation elements work, and do they impact on the actual gameplay?

De Young: In many ways, making an “interactive comic” involves a lot of stylistic choices. For example all the game’s cut-scenes are in 2D, and in 3D our choice of toon rendering, fonts and presentation elements all hint at a comic book style. One feature we’re really excited about is the ability to create a custom character that appears in the game in both 2D and 3D.

Pro-G: Along with a Windows version, the game is out for Mac and Linux, which is great news. Why was the decision made to release Penny Arcade Adventure across these formats?

De Young: At Hothead we’re fans of all three PC platforms we’re developing for, and I think it’s fair to say that Mac and Linux are both under-represented in the gaming space. From an engineering point of view it’s simply the right thing to do, and our use of the Torque Engine makes it quite feasible to pull off.

Pro-G: Can you reveal any of the new characters developed by Mike Krahulik?

De Young: I can’t reveal any new characters at the moment, but I can tell you that a lot of familiar characters will be there, all updated to fit in the 1920s setting.

Pro-G: Can you confirm that the game will be released on an episodic, downloadable basis?

De Young: We’re excited about both of these aspects of the game’s release. Making it available via direct download means there is virtually no lead time between when we complete the game and when people are playing it. And the episodic format will allow us to respond to player feedback very quickly. I think these are both trends that you’re going to see grow in prominence in the game industry.

Pro-G: Thanks for your time.