Penny Arcade

Even if there weren’t an organism who relied absolutely on me every moment of its existence, I still don’t know if I’d be playing WoW - and it’s not just because some notes on the new patch drove me away.  I feel terrible about it, because the guilds that are rocking Dark Iron are filled with exactly the sort of people I’d hate to let down.  When the expansion hits, hopefully there’ll be a progression beyond sixty that doesn’t almost necessarily involve multi-hour raids of escalating size.  I know that’s where the game goes, and I’m simply in no hurry to bring my character to a point where I no longer really enjoy it.  I’ve been trying to figure out why I roll new characters every time I get into that mid forties/fifties range, a condition I have come to refer to as Altoholism.  I guess that’s why.

Are you enjoying your three-sixties, those of you who obtained them?  Are those of you opposed to the machine on some grave matter enjoying the stories about hardware failures and overheating?  Oh, precious Internet.  You are just as I left you.

My mind has been seized by a single thought, whenever I am allowed to have one uninterrupted:  I know precisely which game should be brought to Xbox Live Arcade, preferably for both Xboxen, to a place where it could actually get the kind of respect it deserves.

Of course, I speak of Moonbase Commander. 

There’s a demo available, if you never played it - the publisher simply wasn’t serious about projecting the message that Moonbase Commander was one of the most refined exercises in pure strategic amusement ever, and my own meager efforts to force the game upon you were more than likely swallowed by the din of your Web.  A game where each of four players tries to build (and destroy) robotic networks, it was a pet project that after years of iterative gameplay testing saw a retail version.

The main site for the game isn’t even up anymore, God only knows that dark hole they’ve stuffed it in.  Well, stuff no more.  The game is done.  In fact, it’s not only done, it’s perfect.  I think that it could become legendary with Live pricing and matchmaking prowess, the sort of thing that would really expand the sort of experiences people believe Arcade delivers.   

Plus, you know, Moonbase Commander.

(CW)TB out.

frontalot’s destitute

Sorry for the late comic strip today. We are still trying to work some of the bugs out of our new backend.

I’m still playing WOW every night with my crew. I’ve got Dudefella up to 54 now and an alt around 16. The PvP action on Dark Iron is still awesome and now that I’m 54 I’m really enjoying losing in Alterac Valley. I’m also working on some new WOW projects. It looks like I’ll be doing a couple of the cards for the up coming WOW trading card game and possible some more stuff for Brady Games. I’ll keep you posted.

I had a lot of time over the holiday to play with the 360. So far I think my favorite game is King Kong. It looks spectacular on the 360 but I recommend you go out and get a copy for whatever system you have. I’ve just about got it beat and I’m really enjoying it. The game is short but it’s an awesome ride all the way. Honestly I prefer a well told story and an exciting game that takes me 8 hours to play over some go anywhere do anything sand box title that has “100 hours of game play.”

In my opinion the best thing about the 360 is the new Live stuff. I really like looking on my friends list and seeing all the PA avatars. I’m glad you 360 owners are enjoying the PA Ultraskin and Gamer Pictures. Microsoft is supposed to get us the numbers on how well they sold here pretty soon. Assuming they did well I’m sure we will release more. I got lots of requests for specific characters and I’ll try to make sure I take care of you guys with any future avatar packs.

We’ve gotten tons of requests for 360 faceplates and it’s something we thought about. In fact that’s what we were going to do before Microsoft approached us about being a part of the launch with the custom skins and Gamer Pictures. I think it’s safe to say we’ll have some faceplates as well but my guess is that’s a few months out.

-Gabe out

I have a quick Child’s Play update for you as well. We just broke the $185,000 Mark. We are on track to completely destroy our old records. We’ve added a bunch of new hospitals to the list as well bring our grand total to 19. Check the CP site for more info about the new hospitals as well as some new sponsors. You guys are really doing an amazing job. Thanks to everyone who has donated or put up a sign in their school or even just told a friend about CP.

I have an updated list of some of the items available at our Charity auction/Dinner on Dec 13th. This is by no means everything but it gives you a good idea of what to expect.

-Tour of Bungie

-Remember the giant Masterchief Statue we gave away at PAX? One of those.

-Handmade Murloc Plush Doll (with gurgling sounds) (Thanks Bamatick)

-Bungie Gift Pack

-Two Giant Comic Banners

-Be in a PA Strip

-Penny Arcade Gaming Day

-In-Game Murloc Pet (Blizzard)

-Framed CTS Cels

-Signed Consoles

-Complete Penny Arcade Wardrobe

-XBOX 360 signed by UT2k7, Gears of War and Unreal Engine 3 Team (Thanks Epic!)

We are still a few weeks away from the event and already we’ve sold more tickets than last year. If you don’t have yours yet I recommend getting them quick.

-Gabe out