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VVVVVV, Escape Goat star in GOG.com's 5 for $5 indie game sale
Taking a cue from the roast beef artisans at Arby's, Good Old Games is offering a 5 for $5 sale on a collection of indie games recently added to the storefront's online catalog. GOG's Super 5 Promo includes Terry Cavanagh's VVVVVV, Smudged Cat Games' Adventures of Shuggy and Gateways, MagicalTimeBean's Escape Goat, and Size Five Games' adventure game combo Time, Gentlemen Please! + Ben There, Dan That! Purchased together, all featured games are priced at 99 cents each. Buyers can also mix-and-match the bundle at a discounted rate, or individual games can be purchased separately for $1.99 each. Seasoned curly fries are not included.
Indie Royale offers NightSky, Ben and Dan, and more for a small, but increasing price
We don't mean to put any pressure on you, but the new Indie Royale bundle -- featuring NightSky and both Ben & Dan adventure games, along with Scoregasm and Fate of the World, is getting more expensive by the second. It just went up a penny as we were typing this. As with previous Indie Royale bundles, the price rises as people purchase it (and decreases as people pay over the average), so while it's an incredible deal right now (NightSky alone is normally $10, and the bundle's under $3.50 as we write), who knows if that will still hold by the end of, say, this sentence? But no pressure.
Ben There, Dan That! gets a special edition
Size Five Games, formerly Zombie Cow, has announced a new special edition of Ben There, Dan That. The charming point-and-click adventure has been revamped with graphical enhancements, a new soundtrack (by which we mean there is a soundtrack now) and lots of bonuses. Bonus materials include an eBook, Lowering the Tone, which discusses the story behind the creation of Ben There, Dan That. A video story book is also included, "explaining the backstory as to exactly how Dan wound up dead in a jungle tied to a length of twine in the first place." Purchasers will also receive music cut from the original game, printable posters, some unheard audio and Ben and Dan ringtones. The Ben There, Dan That! special edition is available now at a "pay what you want" price, with a $3.25 minimum. Size Five is also hoping to offer a special edition update to those who already purchased the game on Steam "as soon as possible."
Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please! for $1.25 on Steam today
For less than the cost of one soda from a hotel vending machine, you could have two excellent, funny adventure games right now. Steam's Daily Deal is a bundle containing Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please! by developer Zombie Cow (now Size Five Games), for just $1.25, a savings of 75% over the already minuscule regular price of $5. That $1.25 gets you time travel, space travel, and travel into some places we'd rather not mention. We'd definitely recommend the experience over that soda, unless you're really thirsty.
Zombie Cow cancels Revenge of the Balloon-Headed Mexican
Pour yourself a hot cup of cocoa, grab a box of tissues and sit down in your favorite comfy-chair: We've got sad news. Zombie Cow, the indie studio who brought you Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please!, has decided to cancel its foray into more episodic-friendly adventure gaming, Revenge of the Balloon-Headed Mexican. We understand why Zombie Cow made the decision -- a missive on the developers' site explains that the creators felt they "were going over old, worn ground" -- and we respect their choice: But, hey, here's an alternate, less mature plan we just cooked up: ... Don't? Please? For us? [Thanks, CoinCollector]
Zombie Cow's Marshall: All journos should have to make a game
Zombie Cow's Dan Marshall has always walked in two worlds, writing editorials and reviews for PCZone as he programmed his first game, Gibbage. As he (and partner Ben Ward) went on to create adventure games like Ben There, Dan That, he found the experience extremely helpful. So helpful, he told Gamasutra, that he thinks every journalist should have the same experience. "As a developer I think you're slightly more understanding of the process involved, but as a gamer you know whether or not you're having a good time," Marshall said. "I think all games journos should be forced to make a game somehow, see how they get on. It gives you a more rounded perspective." Luckily, we've got Marshall's request covered.
Dan and Ben return for 'Revenge of the Balloon-Headed Mexican'
In the parlance of its stars, we've got some absolutely brillo news for you today. Zombie Cow Studios has just announced the first of the episodic Dan and Ben games (a follow-up to the delightful adventures Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please): Revenge of the Balloon-Headed Mexican. ZCS's Dan Marshall says that these new episodes (which will be around the length of an actual television program) will allow Dan and Ben to split up and will be less "overtly parodic" than previous undertakings. Also, according to Marshall's Twitter feed, the company's found a worse puzzle than the one from TGP involving Hitler's bloody stool. So ... there's that.
Steam offers Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please! bundle
Frequent listeners to the Joystiq Podcast know that we have nothing but love for Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please!. Heck, we dig the games so much, we even managed to group some words together on them for our website here. Long story short: They're great games, and if you haven't checked them out yet, consider this post the shot in the arm you desperately need. Now, if you're a Steam user, know the two games are available in one bundle for the low price of $4.99 (the same as the official site). Can we expect Ben and Dan's episodic adventures to continue on Steam, as well? Probably.
Zombie Cow to make episodic Dan and Ben games
Well, this is the perfect way to start a Tuesday morning. Zombie Cow Studios, the guys behind the brilliant Ben There, Dan That and Time Gentlemen, Please have told Rock, Paper, Shotgun that they're working on new, episodic adventures for Dan and Ben, prompted in part by the game's ridiculously good critical reception.Chunks of the new series will be short -- hovering around an hour -- and self-contained, so newcomers can hop on at any point. Well, "newcomers" is Zombie Cow's Dan Marshall's language. We prefer to call people who haven't played Ben There, Dan That "bad people."
Review: Time Gentlemen, Please!
I have a tough confession to make, so try not to judge me. Most adventure games that are supposed to be funny ... they don't really make me laugh. I mean, I get that they're amusing, which, combined with the joy of solving the occasional clever puzzle, is enough to keep me playing. There's humor in them, but I always just sort of "get it," instead of it getting me. Time Gentlemen, Please! gets me. In fact, it slays me. The new PC adventure game from Zombie Cow Studios has not only some really brain-wrenching puzzles but humor that feels as sharp and inventive as I'm sure LucasArts classics felt back in the day.
Zombie Cow adventure sequel 'Time Gentlemen, Please!' now available
We're not sure if you know this about us, but we're in the mood to do a little sharing this morning: We love Zombie Cow's hilarious PC graphic adventure, Ben There, Dan That, to a degree we're not entirely comfortable with. You can imagine then our delight as we pass along that a sequel, Time Gentlemen, Please!, is now available.At £2.99/ around $5, TG,P! is slightly less free than its predecessor, but if you played the first one, you know it's but a pittance for the lolz we're sure are contained within. If you're a fan of adventure games at all, especially those in the LucasArts style, just get it. Even if you've stopped believing us after we recommended Imagine: CPAs, we're sure some commenters will back us up on this one.
The Joystiq Free Game Club: Ben There, Dan That
We know that we normally wait until Monday to bring you fresh Free Game Club offerings, but, to be honest, we couldn't go another day without bringing this gem to your attention. If you have any place in your heart for adventure games (especially those of the LucasArts variety), then you must, must play Ben There, Dan That, a hilarious love letter to adventure games of yore.As best friends Ben and Dan, you'll be abducted by aliens, fall out of a cow's rectum and become a pan-dimensional murderer, all in an effort to return to their depressingly ramshackle apartment. The graphics are decidedly low-fi and the walking animations are comically terrible, but the presentation belies some preciously goofy puzzles and genuinely hilarious writing.We weren't at all familiar with developer Zombie Cow before we sat down with the game, and now we can't wait to see what they do next. What do you think?
