[Steam] Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode One - $9.99/50% off

Hmmm. I'm really not fond of this type of game, but for 10 bucks I'll think of it. Maybe just for the humor.

Edit: it is a 50% savings, for those that want to know how good the deal is. 78% score on metacritic.
 
[quote name='solisnk']Is it any good if I dislike PA?[/quote]

You're asking the wrong question because it's good regardless of your stance on PA. Would you like it though? Probably not.
 
I wish this was on the PSN. If it was for the Mac version of the game I would debate it but I'll just have to wait for now :'(
 
I've been trying to decide since last night. I really liked the demo, but I'm only a sort-of fan of PA, and I have enough games. On the other hand, this is the price it should've been in the first place...
 
Don't they usually package the entire run of a episodic game as a value priced game once the series has been completed? I would figure you'd stand to save a lot more money by just waiting.
 
[quote name='neonglow']Is this version compatible with the 360 controller?[/QUOTE]

I played the demo, and given that the control scheme is pretty much that of an old Sierra game ( I know, some of you kids are too young to remember those. ), the keyboard and mouse combo work work really well. Not too crazy about the modified FF battle system, but the game really isn't difficult, so really you don't have to worry about the battles.
 
I've been trying to decide since last night as well. It's hard to ignore the 50% off (especially since I was going to buy it at $20 from Greenhouse anyway). but I've never used Steam.

Anything I need to know about Steam? KaneRobot, why do you dislike Steam? To anyone else who has used Steam, what did you like/dislike? Or is Steam pretty benevolent and nothing to worry about? I assume if I buy PAA:OtRSPoD:E1 through Steam, I have to have Steam running to play it?
 
I only had one problem with Steam, and that was quickly resolved in the forums (I bought Audiosurf, but it didn't turn my demo into the full version). After that it was fine.

I don't feel it's good or bad in any respect, it's just a game/program manager. I do also like the 'free game weekends' they have every once in a while, where you can play one of their games free all weekend.

Steam will turn itself on if it's a game in your list, but I'm not sure if you can turn it off/separate it. You can however start a game without having to start Steam first and turn Steam off once you've started the game. Most of my games need Steam to get updates.
 
[quote name='eugaet']I've been trying to decide since last night as well. It's hard to ignore the 50% off (especially since I was going to buy it at $20 from Greenhouse anyway). but I've never used Steam.

Anything I need to know about Steam? KaneRobot, why do you dislike Steam? To anyone else who has used Steam, what did you like/dislike? Or is Steam pretty benevolent and nothing to worry about? I assume if I buy PAA:OtRSPoD:E1 through Steam, I have to have Steam running to play it?[/quote]
I'll tackle this since I think I can give you a pretty non-biased opinion:

Things I don't like:
Any single player game, like this one, is tied to your account forever. You can't resell it. You can't transfer it. If I want to let a friend play it, I have to give them my user name and password, and we can't be on at the same time. Given that lots of games now are using draconian DRM like BioShock, it may not be that big of a difference than retail copies, but I still contend it's a negative point for the service since they could easily enable transfers and choose not to.

The prices aren't that much better than retail boxed versions, and are often times worse (note this isn't Valve's fault entirely, they had to agree to certain terms for boxed versions to exist, and retailers dont want to be undercut if they are buying a set quantity of physical merchandise. However the point still remains that deals are often better on the boxed version)

There is the very real risk of something happening down the road where Valve ceases to exist, gets taken over, or otherwise and you may not have access to your games anymore. (hint: make backups)

Things I like:
You never need a CD in the drive or stupid fucking DRM that ensures you aren't running any drive emulators

You can download the game as many times as you like. After a format, at a friends house, anywhere you are you can just install Steam and have access to all of your games.

You don't have to run around hunting for patches on sites that force you to wait in a queue, everything is kept up-to-date by Steam


Now to throw a wrench into any fear-mongerer plans:
Lets say you download the Penny-Arcade game. You can take your copy of steam offline and backup all of its contents. If you put this on a CD/DVD you will be able to play the game without ever logging into Steam again. This isn't so applicable for Multiplayer games, but single player ones on the other hand...


It's not all roses but I happen to like this system a lot and I would probably buy more from them if prices were more competitive (for the record, i did hop on this deal due to the 50% off and do agree with most other people here is that's what the game should have been released at.) Anyways, it's your call if you think the benefits are worth more than the pitfalls. To each their own.
 
[quote name='placebo1']You're asking the wrong question because it's good regardless of your stance on PA. Would you like it though? Probably not.[/QUOTE]

you know.. i'm not sayign i'm a big Penny Arcade fan.. (i probably was mroe of a fan in 2002 then i am now) but really the game doesn't grab you early on and the real time turn based thing isn't very fun for me.. so i wouldn't get it.
 
[quote name='spuffin']I'll tackle this since I think I can give you a pretty non-biased opinion:[/quote]Thanks, I appreciate it. :)
 
[quote name='SynGamer']What's the replay value on this? It seems like something you play once and then move on...[/quote]If you only play it once, you won't get to read all the dialogue trees. If that's your thing.
 
Can I assume that the steam version doesn't license you to also play it on mac and linux? I thought that was one of the cooler things about PA's distribution system, but since steam is windows-only, it doesn't seem like it would be the case
 
[quote name='Thrinn']Don't they usually package the entire run of a episodic game as a value priced game once the series has been completed? I would figure you'd stand to save a lot more money by just waiting.[/quote]

^this.
 
[quote name='Thrinn']Don't they usually package the entire run of a episodic game as a value priced game once the series has been completed? I would figure you'd stand to save a lot more money by just waiting.[/quote]

Yes.

But paying slightly more as you go along, you get to play as it goes. If you're a CAG, you won't be paying full price, and if all the PA games come under a steam weekend sale like this, you'll be paying half price and still play them within months of coming out.

On the other hand, a true CAG can wait until the compilation, then speed run through them all. But you have to wait such a long time, you may not find it as appealing/not have as much time. But...that could save you money on the compilation as well.

I personally go for the former depending on the price point. Because of this, I can decide if I want the rest or not. It's ultimately on your willpower and personal value on each hour you lose.
 
Another pro of steam is the integrated chat. If a game runs in steam, chat is done by bringing up an overlay over the game that does not slow it down or require minimizing to desktop. Very useful for coordinating with friends.
 
[quote name='Thrinn']Don't they usually package the entire run of a episodic game as a value priced game once the series has been completed? I would figure you'd stand to save a lot more money by just waiting.[/QUOTE]

Plus they might release it as a real game that you own for some platform (like they did for Sam & Max season 1 for Wii).

[quote name='eugaet']I've been trying to decide since last night as well. It's hard to ignore the 50% off (especially since I was going to buy it at $20 from Greenhouse anyway). but I've never used Steam.

Anything I need to know about Steam? KaneRobot, why do you dislike Steam? To anyone else who has used Steam, what did you like/dislike? Or is Steam pretty benevolent and nothing to worry about? I assume if I buy PAA:OtRSPoD:E1 through Steam, I have to have Steam running to play it?[/QUOTE]

Spuffin addressed...Steam is actually the BEST way to get this IMO, but every method you use has "activation" style DRM, so you're not really buying it.

Have to admit I'm tempted, but given the activation $5 seems more reasonable.
 
i happily trade my ability to lend games out for the ability to play them anywhere and not have to go to the store to buy them.

if you buy them individually, they're close to store prices, but you get nice savings in the bundles.. when HL2 came out, i spent 80 bucks to get the Valve package.. i ended up getting like 15 games out of it.. they kept adding new ones retroactively as they made it to steam since i had already bought the steam package.

so i would log in and be like "oh look, i have blue shift now.. that's new!"

another good buy i got on there was Geometry Wars for $3.

edit: urgh.. trying to buy this but i'm at work on my macbook.. can't purchase without launching steam. i'll have to reboot into xp at lunch.. hopefully the deal lasts
 
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I ended up working too much this weekend and forgot to buy it. Crap! But the Steam page says the deal ends today (not yesterday), so maybe it'll still be available when I get home. It's currently still 50% off.
 
[quote name='spuffin']
Now to throw a wrench into any fear-mongerer plans:
Lets say you download the Penny-Arcade game. You can take your copy of steam offline and backup all of its contents. If you put this on a CD/DVD you will be able to play the game without ever logging into Steam again. This isn't so applicable for Multiplayer games, but single player ones on the other hand...


[/quote]
What? I knew that you could back up Steam games, but I never knew that something like this would work! You mean to tell me that I could start a Steam account for each game I purchase, go offline, back it up and then play any single player game on any pc without Steam? If this is true, then I'll be purchasing a lot more off of Steam!
 
[quote name='eugaet']I've been trying to decide since last night as well. It's hard to ignore the 50% off (especially since I was going to buy it at $20 from Greenhouse anyway). but I've never used Steam.

Anything I need to know about Steam? KaneRobot, why do you dislike Steam?[/QUOTE]

Sorry I missed this earlier. Spuffin did a good job pointing out the positives and negatives, I admit there are a few benefits but the negatives overwhelm them for me. It's not just Steam, I also dislike XBLA which is even worse than Steam.

I don't like not owning the game I bought, and I don't like how digital distribution will slowly kill off too-good-to-be-true deals (glitches/coupon+sale exploits/some retailer lost their mind) as it continues to grow. Simple as that.
 
[quote name='mogamer']What? I knew that you could back up Steam games, but I never knew that something like this would work! You mean to tell me that I could start a Steam account for each game I purchase, go offline, back it up and then play any single player game on any pc without Steam? If this is true, then I'll be purchasing a lot more off of Steam![/QUOTE]

Unless I'm COMPLETELY off base on this this will NOT work. You can back up purchases, but all that does is make it so you don't have to download the whole thing again. You still need Steam installed and still have to activate with them, so it's still the same problem as before.

[quote name='KaneRobot']Sorry I missed this earlier. Spuffin did a good job pointing out the positives and negatives, I admit there are a few benefits but the negatives overwhelm them for me. It's not just Steam, I also dislike XBLA which is even worse than Steam.

I don't like not owning the game I bought, and I don't like how digital distribution will slowly kill off too-good-to-be-true deals (glitches/coupon+sale exploits/some retailer lost their mind) as it continues to grow. Simple as that.[/QUOTE]

Totally agree with all of that, and it's so good to see others realize the problems these things have.

I'm glad at least the Microsoft *FINALLY* brought Live Arcade closer to the level of Steam/iTunes at least by allowing users to transfer content to a new system at will...if only once a year, and through a convoluted process. Sony and Nintendo don't even allow that AFAIK.
 
[quote name='Wolfpup']Unless I'm COMPLETELY off base on this this will NOT work. You can back up purchases, but all that does is make it so you don't have to download the whole thing again. You still need Steam installed and still have to activate with them, so it's still the same problem as before.
[/quote]

OK, this is how I thought it worked, but I'll still try it tonight. I do need to back-up my Steam files on DVD anyway. The hard drive with Steam on it died and it took a long time to download everything on my other hard drive.
 
Sonofabitch! The price went back up before I got home. When Steam says a price ends on a certain day, I wish I knew what time.
 
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