It looks like Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness - Episode One has broken through the controversy and landed as the third most successful XBLA games during its launch period.
According to a post from Penny Arcade's illustrator Mike Krahulik (aka Gabe), Episode One sold 16.5K units in the first three days of release. While it's already impressive for a new game wedged between known quantities like RezHD, Ikaruga and N+ to sell well, it's even more impressive considering Penny Arcade was priced twice as high as the rest in the top four.
According to Mike Krahulik, the top four three-day launch titles on XBLA are:
- RezHD -- 25k units
- Ikaruga -- 22.5k units
- Penny Arcade Adventures Episode One -- 16.5k units
- N+ -- 13k units
Congrats to Hothead Games for rolling twenties.
The XBLA game with the overly long title of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode One finally got some real details. Hothead games, the developer, released the game's final price, $19.99 (1600 MSpts). It remains to be see how the game will sell with a relatively high (for an XBLA game) price. It also remains to be seen what form of episodic game Penny Arcade Adventures will end up being. With a price of twenty dollars it seems more likely to be Half Life 2 style episodes (which debuted at the same price). The only other real episodic gaming example that would apply would be the Sam and Max episodes. Those however are $8.95 and have a monthly release cycle. What path PAA takes remains to be seen, but if it does end up following the Half Life 2 model, expect at least a trilogy of games with an overarching story across them all.
