On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3 First Impressions Review

Introduction

Gameplay Overview

While the design of the Penny Arcade-inspired Rain-Slick Precipice games has always been centered around the relationship between PA's two main characters, this version also comes with a heavy dose of classic RPG flavor. You have a pretty complex class system, standard turn-based combat, and a cast of characters that feels balanced while invoking the spirit of Penny Arcade.

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This third Penny-Arcade game has all the feel of a classic RPG, with top-down map navigation, turn-based combat, and a classic leveling system replacing the action-adventure tropes of the first two episodes. While we were only able to play a short demo of the game at PAX East, it seems that the player-designed avatar is now gone, though the elements of the store from the first two episodes does continue.

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Like a traditional RPG, as you fight enemies, you gradually gain both experience and money. This lets the characters advance in level, with different class designations available to them. As with most RPGs, the combat is crucial, with each character featuring a set of character-specific abilities that let them take advantage of the weaknesses of different enemies. After each battle you are told in a text box how much money and experience you gained, as your health is restored, ready for the next battle. It’s not clear of some of Zeboyd’s other RPG advancements also will appear in this game, however.

Controls

Episode 3 of the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness controls very much like a classic top-down RPG. You move around the map with the directional pad, with one character acting as your leader representing your current party. While we were unable to confirm this, it seems as though the player-designed avatars have been eliminated, with Zeboyd favoring a traditional setup with the player controlling one of the main Penny Arcade-inspired characters.

The enemies each feature on the map itself, with combat initiated by walking into those characters. Unlike modern RPGs with on-map enemies, these enemy avatars work similar to classic boss enemies in older RPGs, with one on-screen character often representing three or four enemies. Once combat has begun, users select various options (items, abilities, or physical attacks) from a menu, with more advanced abilities taking several turns to charge up.

Graphics, Storytelling, & Atmosphere Overview

It's pretty obvious right from the moment you pick up episode three of Penny Arcade's On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, that the spirit and feel are going to be completely different from the first two games. What hasn't changed, however, is the storyline and humor. While your player-created avatar has disappeared, you take over control of your two heroes, Tycho Ephemerous Brahe, a scholar of Apocalyptic Studies, and the volatile Jonathan Gabriel at the Startling Developments Detective Agency. These are, of course, the same Tycho and Gabe characters from the Penny Arcade comics, re-imagined in a Lovecraftian, comic adventure.

While this game is a pure menu-driven RPG with 16-bit visuals, the story builds on episode two, just weeks after the events of that game. In our time with the game, we were excited to see that it relied heavily on classic RPG tropes, using text interaction between the two main characters (1920s versions of Penny Arcade's Tycho and Gabe) to emphasize the humorous spirit that has made the Penny Arcade series so famous.

Storytelling

In line with classic RPGs, episode three of the Penny Arcade series features no voice acting, using text-based interaction between characters. While this might be a problem for most IPs, the Penny-Arcade humor was designed (and thrives in) a purely text-driven environment. All the classic humor you'd expect is here, with fans of the first two episodes (not to mention classic RPGs) feeling right at home with episode 3's style. We found the quality of writing to be top-notch, though those who don't enjoy Penny Arcade's type of humor (or the relationship between its two main characters) may find some of the storytelling to be a little tiresome.

Art Design

In taking over the Penny Arcade series, Zeboyd Games has brought their classic 16-bit pixelized visuals to bear on the PA Adventures universe. The result is a game that looks and plays like any classic RPG, with an obvious Penny Arcade twist. While we only played an early level of the game, it didn't appear that there was going to be much in the way of the high-end cutscenes or summon sequences that have popped up in modern RPGs. Instead, the game seems to use a combination of 2D comic art and top-down RPG pixelized visualizations that somehow feel more seamlessly connected than their disparate styles might suggest.

Sound Design

We weren't able to get much of a feel for any of the more advanced audio elements that Zeboyd may have lent to the series, the sound effects seem fairly traditional by RPG standards.. Most of the audio that we picked up was reserved for sound effects for various attacks and spells, with their effect being confirmed with the rather stock sounds of physical hits and explosions.

Conclusion

Classic RPGs in the vein of Dragon Quest and pre-FF7 seem to be as divisive as any other genre in the market. To put it lightly, some people love them and some people really, really hate them. By switching from a classic point-and-click adventure style to a classic top-down RPG, the Penny Arcade guys seem to have elected to go from one barren genre to another.

That isn't to say classic RPGs don't have their fans, or that the style doesn't perfectly suit the humor of Penny Arcade. If anything, the classic RPG gameplay brings out the best parts of this series, hopefully avoiding many of the "fetch quest" aspects that made the first two episodes occasionally frustrating to play through.

This third episode, developed by the fine folks at Zeboyd Games, uses classic RPG tropes with some modern twists to bring PA's humor to life and advance the story of the first two games. We weren't able to get an idea of the full story arc, but from menacing mimes to the very mortal Crabomancers, you can expect a full dose of Penny Arcade humor with some old-school RPG flavor.

While it certainly won't be for everyone, episode three of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is sure to be a hit with PA's many fans. While the style change is jarring, if a Penny Arcade-inspired classic RPG sounds like the best thing ever, then, well, you'll likely enjoy this game. If you'd rather get dental surgery than play a game that looks like it came from the 16-bit console era, then this game is probably one to avoid. For our money, though, the long-awaited episode three of Penny Arcade's gaming adventure seems well worth the wait.