Hothead Games and Penny Arcade announce plans for a cross-platform episodic game based on the popular comic strip that paradoxically can occasionally be a trifle unkind to game developers. Word is:

Penny Arcade and Hothead Games Join Forces to Create Video Games Based on the Penny Arcade Characters and Universe

Bellevue, Washington (August 25, 2006) — The creators of online ultracomic Penny Arcade have joined forces with Hothead Games, an independent and experienced video game developer, to collaboratively create video games based on the Penny Arcade comic.

“We’re really excited to be working with Hothead Games on our first electronic adventure," said writer Jerry Holkins, his clawed feet resting atop a huge slab of granite. "From the moment we laid eyes on them, it was clear they had the technical and creative chops to execute our grim vision. Now that we have pooled our strengths, our dark work may truly begin." Holkins then paused to eat a rat whole.

The first game, entitled Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, will be a comic adventure game initially available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, followed by a version for next-generation consoles. The game will be available by digital download, delivered in episodic format with new installments of the adventure coming out several times a year.

Vlad Ceraldi, President of Hothead Games, says this new venture feels very comfortable for the team Hothead has assembled for the project: “All our developers are industry veterans with years of experience translating characters from other media into video games, having been involved with such hits as The Simpsons Hit & Run and The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. So working with Penny Arcade to create their first game is a natural fit, and we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with them.” Ceraldi added, “I’ve promised this with past games, and I stand by it: if the game sucks, I’ll eat my shirt.”

A release date for the first episode of Penny Arcade Adventures is to be announced.