Publisher: Penny Arcade
Developer: Zeboyd Games
System requirements: Windows XP, 1.6 GHz CPU, 1 GB RAM, DirectX 9.0c-compatible graphics card, DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound device, Windows Media Player, 200 MB hard-drive space
Genre: RPG
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

It’s another day at Strange Developments, Inc., and investigators/god-killers Tyco and Gabe await their next case. The phone suddenly rings. On the other end, a dark, brooding silence with hints of fear. This can only mean one thing: a phone call from someone inside a dark mime cult. Our dashing heroes dash off heroically to investigate. Thus starts the third chapter in the On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness series, an utterly delightful JRPG spin on the venerable web comic Penny Arcade from retro-masters Zeboyd Games.

The first two installments of the series were developed by Hothead Games four years ago. While warmly received, they didn’t gather enough steam to complete the trilogy. Now, Zeboyd has stepped up to do what must be done. Following the previous game’s JRPG roots, RSPD3 is done up in the 16-bit pastiches Zeboyd does so very well. If you’ve played their previous games Breath of Death VII or Cthulhu Saves the World, then you’ve got an idea.

Of course, the Penny Arcade comic itself lacks any true narrative, and perhaps that’s why RSPD works so well. It takes characters you already know and fits them into archetypical roles in a genre story. It’s like a murder-mystery dinner party, only Cthulhu shows up (note to self: DO THIS). While this third chapter follows right after the previous two, you won’t feel like you’ve missed something if you just pick it up now.

While traditional RPGs are about managing resources between fights, here everything regenerates between combat, even items. While this might sound like a shocking heresy, it actually removes a lot of frustration and needless tedium. Fights now play out like grand strategic affairs as you try to desperately use every resource available to you to survive to the next fight. It’s interesting, it’s fast, and it’ll hold you in its grip even if you despise traditional RPG combat. The traditional three-character party consists of our two heroes and guest characters who file in and out as the story progresses. Meanwhile, you can attach a number of different class badges to Tyco and Gabe. These range from the Cardboard Tube Samurai to the Crabomancer, and while those might not seem like polar opposites, there’s also a wide range of creative classes in-between.

Jerry “Tyco” Holkins’ writing is in true form. That man could write a daily essay on his sock drawer and it would still be an engrossing piece of literature. This is the one JRPG in which you utterly devour all the text you find, not because you must trigger the next sequence, but because it’s just that delectable. The wit utterly drips from this game. Every item description, monster text, even the monsters themselves are hilarious. For example, there’s the Mime Pirates (“’talk like a mime-pirate day’ never caught on”). Meanwhile, Zeboyd faithfully recreates Mike “Gabe” Krahulik’s expressive artwork in sprite form, a feat as impressive as it is delightful. The very best of Penny Arcade has been distilled and sprinkled liberally across the entire game.

On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3 isn’t just a witty concoction of JRPG tropes, but a uniquely inventive game that can stand on its own. This isn’t just for Penny Arcade fans, but those who enjoy strategy and wit of any kind. Not only is RSPD3 a fairly meaty game that clocks in at around 10 hours, but it’s also only $5 and available on PC, Mac and Xbox 360. Currently, Zeboyd is promising future content updates and a fourth (and final?) installment next year. If its anything like this game, it’s something to mark on the family calendar.

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