3/19 Q&A with Gabe

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Gabe will shortly be up in the hizzouse answering your questions about the new game, so go ahead and post any questions that you'd like answered.

[ alphamonkey edit : if you want to stay up to date with the information in this thread, I'd reccomend subscribing to daily emails. ]

Keith

What game is RSPD closest to in terms of gameplay?

JJ

Do Gabe and Tycho act as your constant party members or will they only be featured here and there?

darleysam

firstly, it's really cool that you guys are involving us forumers in this in any way, getting feedback from us and whatnot.

Now, a question that was asked by no-less than two people in the G&T thread: at some point, can we expect a box of kittens that can be flipped-off, or a dick of a baby that can be punched?

Weaver

Any word on if the game might be retailed with some sort of ultra-slick boxed edition with all kinds of goodies in it?

cloudeagle

At what point in development is the game? You mentioned that the 3D models in the game were early and put in there at the last minute... how much work has been completed, and how much remains to be done?

agoaj

Is there any one game you would say is the largest inspiration for the design of OTRSPOD?

Can we expect references going all the way back to the first strips as to be esoterically awesome?

Will we have to collect 100 shit filled Krispy Kreme's doughnuts to complete a level?

Which Penny-Arcade Continuity does this take place in?

Will it be simple enough to be played with an NES pad, a 360 controller, or is Keyboard and the Mouse the best way to play?

Etch

I noticed that someone said the create-a-character in one of the screenshots looks pretty much like a Gabe pallet swap. What I'd like to know is about how much customization are you guys figuring on including? I've always loved games where I could make characters, but it's easy to get frustrated when you only have a few options to tool around with, and the character ends up looking very similar to the one your friend makes.

StephenB.2006

Any possibility of an XBox Live distribution?

How long of a game are we talking about here? 2 hours or 20 hours of playtime?

Gabriel

Hey guys. I’ll do my best to keep up with all the questions while I’m here at the office today. If I miss something I apologize. If I can’t answer something because we aren’t talking about it yet I’ll let you know.

-What game is RSPD closest to in terms of gameplay?

That is a difficult one to start with. It really is a sort of hybrid. We thought about calling in an adventure RPG but when I think about those games I think about games like Zelda and that’s not quite right. Our game is much more of a classic RPG as far as combat is concerned. So we are calling it an RPG/adventure.


Do Gabe and Tycho act as your constant party members or will they only be featured here and there?


They are your constant party members. Think about Kingdom Hearts. Goofy Donald and Sora represent the core party. Your character along with Gabe and Tycho are the core party.

At this point we have no plans for kitten flipping off. It’s still early though.

Gabriel

Weaver wrote: »

Any word on if the game might be retailed with some sort of ultra-slick boxed edition with all kinds of goodies in it?

That's not something we've thought about yet. I am a fan of collectors editions of things though.

Spectral Swallow

I asked this in the G&T thread, but never got a response, so hey I'll go straight to the source:

Can you use the gabe's shirt pacman thing, or would you need to pay Namco? I could see the traditional costumes being a good bonus, but have no idea how law on that kind of thing works.

Gabriel

cloudeagle wrote: »

At what point in development is the game? You mentioned that the 3D models in the game were early and put in there at the last minute... how much work has been completed, and how much remains to be done?

Well I've enver done this before so it's hard for me to say. I can say I'm pretty amazed at how fast it's going. The guys at Hot Head are pros and it's been exciting to watch how much it improves every week.

TankHammer

I would like to ask about the world of New Arcadia.

Is this going to be a city like New York or L.A. (or Boston, Seattle, Chigago, etc...) focusing on a gritty urban environment? I saw some short buildings in the trailer, making it seem more like suburbia. What kind of mood can we expect from the setting? Chaotic? Dreary/suspenseful? Ominous? What are you shooting for?

Gabriel

agoaj wrote: »

Is there any one game you would say is the largest inspiration for the design of OTRSPOD?

Can we expect references going all the way back to the first strips as to be esoterically awesome?

Will we have to collect 100 shit filled Krispy Kreme's doughnuts to complete a level?

Which Penny-Arcade Continuity does this take place in?

Will it be simple enough to be played with an NES pad, a 360 controller, or is Keyboard and the Mouse the best way to play?

Well we have taken inspiration from all sorts of places. As far as the idea of dropping you into this Penny Arcade universe I think Kingdom Hearts was a big inspiration. We talked about letting you play as Gabe or Tycho but in the end the idea of letting players create a character and then them letting them play alongside PA characters seemed like the right move.

Haha no we don't have any doughnuts in the game.

This is a brand new continuity. We'll be creating some comics to help lead into the game. You'll see lots of your favorite characters but seen through the lense of this steam punk/film noir world of New Arcadia. Again think Kingdom Hearts.

darleysam

regarding what we saw in the trailer, what bits were actually indicative of the gameplay? There was a 3d bit of one of the characters (can't remember which now) running along some kind of street, that looked like it was in-game footage. Then there's the screenshot that's been taken from it, that showed a more isometric perspective with the 3 characters. I know it's all early stuff, but are both of these kinds of things going to feature at different times, or was, say, the 3d stuff more of a concept animation?

Gabriel

StephenB.2006 wrote: »

Any possibility of an XBox Live distribution?

How long of a game are we talking about here? 2 hours or 20 hours of playtime?

Sorry I can't talk about those yet.

Gabriel

Spectral Swallow wrote: »

I asked this in the G&T thread, but never got a response, so hey I'll go straight to the source:

Can you use the gabe's shirt pacman thing, or would you need to pay Namco? I could see the traditional costumes being a good bonus, but have no idea how law on that kind of thing works.

Pac Man belongs to Namco. I think we'd have a hard time using it in the game.

Xaquin

Not sure if this has been asked or answered anywhere, but will there be any CTS action?

please let there be

Pseudonym

I too am interested in the custom character options. Will we have much in the way of clothes options? Unlockable hats and such things perhaps? We can make female player characters, right?

Will Charles be in the game to issue pie based insults to the adventuring party?

Rankenphile

How is combat handled in game? Is it all real-time, or turn-based, or a hybrid of the two?

TetraNitroCubane

First, thanks for taking questions like this. It bolsters my confidence in this game even without knowing too much about it, and it's a class act on your part.

Second, I've heard that the game will be episodic in nature. Is this true? If it is, will we be able to carry over our create-a-character between episodes, or will the continuity change with each release?

Rankenphile

Oh!

And will we see a cameo by Khoo?

skyknyt

What kind of character building will there be? Static, dynamic, or skills trees and whatnot?

Gabriel

Kantankeris wrote: »

I would like to ask about the world of New Arcadia.

Is this going to be a city like New York or L.A. (or Boston, Seattle, Chigago, etc...) focusing on a gritty urban environment? I saw some short buildings in the trailer, making it seem more like suburbia. What kind of mood can we expect from the setting? Chaotic? Dreary/suspenseful? Ominous? What are you shooting for?

All those moods and a couple more:) What you saw in the trailer is a very small slice of the world.

Gabriel

darleysam wrote: »

regarding what we saw in the trailer, what bits were actually indicative of the gameplay? There was a 3d bit of one of the characters (can't remember which now) running along some kind of street, that looked like it was in-game footage. Then there's the screenshot that's been taken from it, that showed a more isometric perspective with the 3 characters. I know it's all early stuff, but are both of these kinds of things going to feature at different times, or was, say, the 3d stuff more of a concept animation?

We're still working on nailing down the look of the game. Think of all that stuff as "concept".

Gabriel

Pseudonym wrote: »

I too am interested in the custom character options. Will we have much in the way of clothes options? Unlockable hats and such things perhaps? We can make female player characters, right?

Will Charles be in the game to issue pie based insults to the adventuring party?

We're working very hard to make the create a player options very deep. This is a character that you will take from episode to episode and we want him/her to be cool.

Moe Fwacky

Will there be a playable demo ready for PAX this year?

Gabriel

skyknyt wrote: »

What kind of character building will there be? Static, dynamic, or skills trees and whatnot?

I can't really talk about that yet sorry.

Gabriel

Moe_Fwacky wrote: »

Will there be a playable demo ready for PAX this year?

I can't say.

agoaj

Any idea on price and distribution? Will this only be available online at first or will we see boxed copies at EB?

mtomczak

As I understand it, the game is planned for cross-platform release. What engine is Hothead using? Have they built something in-house or are they using a commodity engine?

Gabriel

agoaj wrote: »

Any idea on price and distribution? Will this only be available online at first or will we see boxed copies at EB?

Under twenty bucks. We're still working out all the different ways we'll be delivering the game.

SniperGuy

Can we get any sort of story summary? Obviously it's sorta lovecraftian, but are we gonna see actual eldrich horrors, or is there just a fruit fucker uprising of sorts?

Gabriel

mtomczak wrote: »

As I understand it, the game is planned for cross-platform release. What engine is Hothead using? Have they built something in-house or are they using a commodity engine?

The game is being built using the Torque engine from Garage Games. So far we have announced PC, MAC and Linux.

Yousorrymon

Are there going to be any easter eggs?

Ozzy

Gabe,

Are you planning to distribute the game on any other platform besides the PC? If yes, which one(s) do you have in mind?

Edit: Never mind, I see the answer below. Thanks!

Zauriel

Will there be anything like unlockable minigames? I'd die for a Twisp and Catsby minigame, or even just some random PA interludes from other worlds. Although, that would probably kill the mood of the game. Also, will you guys be including cheat codes? No offense, but I really think those tend to ruin games, but of course that's your prerogative to include or not include them. Hrm, although a radioactive scorpion cheat wouldn't totally suck....

Finally, will we see other members of the PA staff? I've only caught glimpses of them from the ping-pong tourney and I have no idea who they are or what they do. Just wondering.

Oh right, one last thing, will there by any sort of online gameplay? Or maybe just trading high scores or characters?

darleysam

ooh, it's probably another you can't say for certain, but will Twisp and Catsby make a cameo appearance?

Gabriel

SniperGuy wrote: »

Can we get any sort of story summary? Obviously it's sorta lovecraftian, but are we gonna see actual eldrich horrors, or is there just a fruit fucker uprising of sorts?

I can't say too much. It is important to remember this is an episodic story. Each one will represent a complete story from beging to end but they also fit into a much larger arc. T

SniperGuy

So the first episode is Rain Slick Precipice, and the 2nd will be something different? And each episode is 20 buckish? Sounds cool to me.