Tag: Penny Arcade »

Quingo, the game that combines bingo with trivia and lets users earn money for their favorite causes just by playing, has received two new updates. It now features Penny Arcade's Child's Play charity as an organization that players can choose to support in the game. It also adds new holiday themed content with a Winter Wonderland question pack.

I play games on my iPhone a lot, as I’m sure many of you reading this do. The thing is, while many iOS games are great in their own right and function well for gaming in small bursts or extended sessions, there aren’t a whole heck of a lot that can be picked up, played, and stopped at the drop of a hat. Oh sure most can be suspended but I’m talking about games that actually allow you to quit entirely and come right back to where you left off no matter how long that may take. Games that auto-save constantly, can be saved at any time with a single button press, stuff like that. Here are our picks for four of the best.

Penny Arcade The Game: Gamers vs. Evil
Most of Playdek’s card games fall into this category but I’ve chosen this one because it’s the most recent. And because I happen to really like it. Gamers vs. Evil tracks progress in each match, however many there might be at once spread out over single and multiplayer modes. This means you can play a single hand or even stop in the middle of one, quit for whatever reason, and then start it right back up again from wherever it left off. It’s as perfect for micro-gaming sessions as it is for lengthy ones.

Junk Jack
I’ve been thoroughly enjoying this 2D Minecraft-like since its release for many reasons, but it’s the save system that’s always impressed me the most. Pausing the game at any point will save progress automatically, so stopping at a moment’s notice is never a problem. Even more impressive is the way Jack’s inventory can be saved and transferred between worlds, so even if you get tired of your current game you can always start a new one and keep all your cool stuff.

Game Dev Story
Kairosoft’s first iOS release continues to be their greatest as far as I’m concerned, but really all of their games are perfect for quick starts and stops of game time. That big Save button sitting on the main screen for every single one of their titles that saves progress instantly makes it incredibly easy to stop what you’re doing and get back to actual work. Not that I’m condoning that sort of behavior, of course.

Zenonia 5
Much like Kairosoft, GAMEVIL also has the handy Save button down pat. Their action RPG series is plenty of fun and this most recent release is absolutely packed with features, and yet they’ve (thankfully) kept the one that makes it the easiest to play whenever and wherever. It’s comforting to know I can tap once to save and then bolt off of my train without having to worry about losing all that progress.

The Backstory
Both Zeboyd and Penny Arcade have had a hand in their fair share of RPGs over the past few years, but it wasn’t until recently that the two found each other and created some incredibly sweet (and utterly surreal) music together. This third entry in the Rain-Slick Precipice series marks both the Penny Arcade RPG’s first foray into “retro” territory as well as Zeboyd’s best refinement of their quirky RPG system to date. Ancient sea gods and mimes are just the beginning.

The Gameplay
One of the biggest differences between a Zeboyd RPG and a more typical example is the treatment of the combat. Health, magic, and items all reset after every fight, eliminating the need to constantly micromanage party resources. To compensate for this enemies gain strength with each passing turn, lending a sense of urgency and increased strategy to every combat scenario. What makes Rain-Slick 3 so much fun (aside from the rampant Penny Arcade humor) is the emphasis on multi-classing. Finding the right combination of character abilities can lead to some incredibly satisfying victories, and the way everything resets after every battle makes experimentation far less grueling.

How does it Compare?
The original Rain-Slick 3 made its debut on both Steam and Xbox Live Indie Games, and felt right at home on both platforms. It’s wonderfully retro while at the same time incredibly modern and accessible. And all of that “magic” has been retained in the iOS version. All the humor, the unique mechanics, the splendid visuals, and so on have made the transition almost seamlessly. The only real difference between the mobile version and its console/PC brethren - aside from the smaller screen and blessed portability - is the interface, which has been adjusted for touch controls. And save the rather garish virtual stick, it’s very near flawless.

One of the things I love most about Rain-Slick 3 on iOS is that it’s not an “inferior” version like some ports tend to be. All the bonus content (alternate appearance packs, Lair of the Seamstress DLC, etc) is included, and it’s received just as much post-release support as the other platforms. The fact that it’s a fantastic game even without prior knowledge of any inside jokes or experience with the previous two titles makes it all the more noteworthy.

*NOTE: “Console-quality” refers to the quality of the experience, not just the graphics. This is about the depth of gameplay, content, and in some cases how accurately it portrays the ideals of its console counterpart.*

Popular web comic Penny Arcade has been around for as long as I can remember. With its sharp sense of humor, it's kept gamers laughing with glee. Now with its new iOS app, Penny Arcade's Decide-o-tron sets out to solve the gamer's biggest dilemma: what game to play next.

We've all been there. A spare hour to game and it's impossible to decide what to play. I tend to find myself staring at that pile of games and before I know it, my spare time is gone and I hardly had a chance to actually play anything. The Decide-o-tron 8000, to give it its full title, will hopefully solve that dilemma by deciding for me.

Arriving on the App store in the next few weeks, the app requires the bare minimum of effort. Users just have to input their gaming preferences and then the app's predictive technology figures out from a list of more than 10,000 games what games should be recommended. Recommendations cover most major consoles such as PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Network, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Marketplace, Wii, Nintendo DS, DSI and 3DS, WiiWare/Virtual Console, GameCube, GameBoy Advance and PC games. Users can always manually add items to the catalogue too, either by scanning in the barcode or entering a search keyword.

Besides recommendations, wishlist functionality is included with the ability to share it with friends or family. As well as all that, play lists are included from online and gaming personalities starting with Penny Arcade's Mike “Gabe” Krahulik and Jerry “Tycho” Holkins. Other famous people are promised to be included in the future.

Ultimately though, the great advantage here is to have the decisions of what game to play next made a heck of a lot easier, kind of like a gaming equivalent to music recommendation service Pandora Radio.

It's all a pretty cool idea and potentially very useful. Penny Arcade's Decide-o-tron 8000 is now available for free, check it out. Check out the screenshots below.