Surprise! Penny's Big Breakaway Is Available To Download Right Now

The game looks great, very fun.
But I won't be buying it today. Unless and until there's a physical edition, this one doesn't get my interest.

Wonder how many people freaked out when it was revealed this game was coming out today? Definitely wishlisting this. looks at massive wishlist ... oh boy.

Praying that the trailer was just randomly 30fps like the animated one was, and not that the Switch version actually runs at that framerate (if that's the case, I'll grab the game on Steam)

Edit: It's 30fps with 60fps menus. Pretty disappointing after the reveal trailer in the June Direct was 60fps

I might look into it down the line, but it's not going to be a day one thing. Partially the price, partially because while this looks good I have tried and tried to get into Sonic Mania and just plain don't like it so I don't entirely trust this one to land with me.

Looks good, but then so did Yooka-Laylee, so I’ll need a review.

Though come to think of it YL reviewed well, but for me the 5 worlds in order were: great, good, bad, broken, not even a world. So there’s that.

Somebody will release a physical for this for sure.

am curious to see how it performs on switch, the reveal trailer looked like it was running at 60 which is ideal for an action platformer but the video of the direct it looked lower.

could have been the video but im hoping that whether its 30 or 60 its stable since the core game looks amazing.

I already knew the game have PS5 version as well so I will get the PS5 version instead.

@PikaPhantom I’m thinking this should run better on PS5 as well. But if it doesn’t I’ll just skip it.🤷🏻‍♂️

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2024/02/surprise-indie-platformer-pennys-big-breakaway-available-now-on-ps5#reply

oh, this is definitely a game that needs a demo.

So soon! I'll wait for the reviews, but I trust this game will be tons of fun.

I’m getting this tomorrow!

$30 is not bad, will buy it next month as this month I had no spare cash.

I'll wait for the inevitable physical release, but this was definitely a nice shadow drop for those who prefer digital.

Gonna wait for a physical edition, but this is one I want to pick up for sure!

Getting this one right away

Would love to get it right away, but i'm waiting for a physical Release.

Doesn't look that good, and seems to run at 30 FPS on Switch.

Should have stayed with SEGA.

I will wait for reviews, but this does look very interesting.

Ooh, this is great! ^^ I’ve been waiting for this to come out, can’t wait to play it!

I am curious though, why is it that most people are waiting for a physical release?

Already got it, it's pretty fun so far. It is locked to 30fps on Switch, but it's a stable 30fps, no drops or stutters from what I've seen. If you have a PC or PS5 then by all means get that version, but this isn't a bad port at all.

No physical version?

I will absolutely be picking this one up on Steam Deck OLED. It is going to be an awesome time.

@Smth2024 Before someone starts a snide diatribe, some people prefer the feel of having a library and something nice to look at (like me), the ability to re-sell (also me), but it mostly comes from people feeling that their physical version will outlast the digital marketplace version in a sense. In 25 years from now, if you still have a functional Switch, it’s questionable as to whether you’ll be able to re-download these games, but if you have a functioning physical copy, it won’t be a question.

I prefer the convenience of digital in that regard, especially since I anticipate relocating internationally within the next couple years and don’t want more things to put in a crate, nor do I expect to be unable to play Switch games through some means in 25 years time (heck, you can play Switch games right now on computers), but everyone has their own preferences.

Bought it played it for a bit.

First, it appears to running 60fps, the intro videos, logos and every appear to be 60fps which I assume is a statement of intent... I'm not frame counter but that's what it feels like, but I'm playing on a Lite and don't care that much (see below)

Second, I'm a total sucker for N64 era novoutly 3d platformers, Rocket Robot on Wheels, Space Station Silicon Valley, Glover et al, I like a good solid concept irresepective of its implementation and some how this is new!??

Third, the default locked camera is great, think Super Mario 3D World, no issues and really drives you through the levels and gives you the 2D hidden stuff.

Fourth, the depth of field effect is brilliant and is obviouslt being destroyed by YouTube video compression, very subtle very nice, no idea why its so impressive, but there we go.

Fifth, colour pallette feels like a Saturn game, so another weakness of mine.

It'll live and die by the level design, but first impressions are good.

So it went from a very boring direct to a great direct just like that?! Awesome!

serious question: isnt a game "physical" in the same sense, once you download it to an SD card?

are you really just after the box, artwork, and label?

(i have physical and digital games, im not angling at anything here.)

also, whats the prospect of duplicating sd cards with switch games on them? anybody know about this?

ive got another one even: can eshop games that ive downloaded be "revoked?" if not, couldnt a strong argument be made that a downloaded game on my console is more "permanent" than a game card that could be physically lost or destroyed, so long as the switch itself survives?

this game looks cool (ill get it on sale.) thanks! 👍

Definitely excited to get this. I’m very surprised it got released today though!

I was totally expecting this to be 60fps on Switch! Bummer, I'll have to avoid it on Switch... Hopefully it'll be locked at 90fps on Deck and locked to infinity on PC!

@JibberX From what I've seen on youtube only the cutscenes run at 60fps on Switch. The gameplay is only 30fps. I'm glad that doesn't bother some people, but as you could guess from my name I vastly prefer quadruple that frame rate. I'm excited to play this on PC or something.

I am still not sure that I am going to buy it now at $30, but when I saw that it was done by Christian Whitehead (or his team), then I immediately added it to my wishlist to grab in the future.

Bought this on impulse due to the dev team behind it aaaaaand… very much regret it already.

There are elements of this game which are strikingly detailed for the era it is representing which adds a layer of nostalgia… for better and for worse.

The 30fps is not really something I noticed until people started pointing it out on here… and yeah… that actually sucks a bit. It’s completely fine, but I hope they can patch this up because it doesn’t exactly look like a title that pushes the hardware to not be able to obtain 60fps as standard, something which I do feel reactionary platformers benefit from more than most genres.

Also surprised that in playing the first world and several levels in that I have only heard one tune from the soundtrack. Does this not change up each level then? We only have a change of track every world? Thats a little dissapointing if so - especially considering the length of these levels and music loops (and I LOVE Tee Lopes work).

My main gripes however are the fixed camera angles (this isn’t bad - but feels restrictive) but this has caused me so many pitfalls and deaths when I accidentally end up misaligning my position due to the angle change, not to mention using the yoyo (which is also controlable by the thumb-stick… which I keep thinking is for the camera) so this flings me off. Actually, accidentally flinging myself off the edge is something I tend to do all too frequently regardless of input. I’m really hoping this is just a me issue and that I need to simply adjust to the controls.

I’m also not massive on Penny’s character design… actually I really dislike it (but it does fit with the aesthetic I suppose). Despite this, and the retro 90’s early 3D look… they really nailed the art-style nonetheless.

But honestly something isn’t quite clicking for me yet, hopefully it will in later worlds and I’ll have that “it all makes sense now” moment where practise makes for perfect runs and fun combos. But so far I can’t help but feel this would have worked much better as a 2D platformer to roll around with instead of this 3D take which feels slightly at odds with itself.

I would love to support the Sonic Mania team, but I just don't have a hankering for 3D Platformers these days outside of Mario. If I had a demo I might be able to change my tune. I'll double check to see if GameFly has it.

was very excited for this and was planning to get it as soon as possible only to learn it costs a full $50 here :/

@NeonPizza Yeah, I appreciate what you're saying. I am a huge fan of black frame insertion though. For me it's very worth the input lag. I play Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom with Samsung's motion clarity and black frame insertion turned on and they look incredible. When I move steadily, or am paragliding or flying (pretty smooth movement), those games can almost look like 90fps or something. Recently I've built some crazy electric cars with lots of big wheels, weapons, and fast movement and it almost makes TOTK unplayable. But then I took this crazy vehicle to the Depths and the lighter load down there means more overhead for the Switch to maintain 30fps with perfect frame pacing, so my awesome fast car is fun to use again.
Also, I'd love it if some company would release a new CRT for gaming. I'd buy it instantly since I know it would look way better than any LG C3 in terms of motion clarity. I'd be happy with a 20 inch CRT, especially if it could do 120hz! That would be sick!

@rjejr I disagree, I think Yooka Laylee is great. I’m still playing through it (nearly complete), it’s even meant I have Super Mario Wonder sitting there half played.
I do agree things could be improved, for example the first world is a bit confusing initially, and easy to get lost. It can be hard tracking down the last few pagies on each world - even with the hunter tonic, and the railcart mini games are just frustrating. I’d encourage others to pick it up, especially when it goes on sale for a couple of £.

@Inaroomalone " I think Yooka Laylee is great "

A lot of people thought it was great, that's what worries me about this game b/c it looks a bit similar but I didn't really like YL at all. Well I shouldn't say at all, I did like about half of it, I like 3D platformers, just not that one.

@-wc- Kind of feels obvious to say, but a game on a cart is permanently stored and functions like a custom chip which is much more expensive than a read/write type of SD card.

This inevitably is more durable and theoretically will outlast data on an SD card.

Secondly, you can't easily just download a game from the eshop, transfer to an SD card, and then package and sell it after you are done playing it. So the digital game is never really ever physical in the same way since it is tied to your (digital) account (console, and or digital marketplace).

You can look at it that yes, both are really just data on some kind of storage, but technically speaking are not the same thing and do not share the same benefits (and downsides) as each other using them as-intended.

@GOmar

thanks for taking my question seriously and answering in earnest!

obv i realize you cant resell games on an sd card the same way you can from carts.

you say its theoretically more durable and will outlast an sd card. ill take your word on that, and im inclined to agree... theoretically. but, do we have and data on the halflife of an sd card? is it years, decades? assuming that it's a high quality card, is there any real risk that it will expire in my lifetime?

this only makes me more curious about the prospect of duplicating switch-formatted sd cards, or even backing them up to hard drive/cloud storage. if this is possible, or becomes possible, then the "durability" argument gets even more complicated.

furthermore, "owning" a game on the eshop is a bit of a built in insurance policy. if my entire physical collection and even my switch itself are destroyed in a flood/fire/tornado et al, they can be recovered without cost as long as the eshop is still online.

im an old school gamer from way back, and of course i comprehend and appreciate the value of physical games. i have many of my precious valuable carts and discs from back when, and also a couple dozen physical games for my switch. I get it.

OTOH, ive given into temptation (or temporary economic need) and sold some of my beloved games over time, and i regret almost all of them. I will never sell another game if i can help it. also, some games have indeed ceased to function (most of which i still have, but are valueless both to play or sell.) if i had digital backups, or an eshop to redownload those games somehow, id be better off than having once owned a physical copy, no longer.

@-wc- Yea that is fair and one thing I do know is that the method they use to make modern carts are not as good as previous carts made during the Genesis and SNES era for instance.

One thing for sure though, is that an SD card can be rewritten and have data deleted, so already it is at a disadvantage comparatively. Not that you will purposefully delete data, but accidents happen and corruption is a real possibility. That can't happen with a game cart.

Same goes for your console, but like you said, you can simply get your data back and in order once you re-download everything. So yea, one can argue that a digital library is more secure and has fail safes. I agree with that.

Curious, which games of yours stopped working?

I don't know the exact number, but I have around 1,000 games and only ever had one break on me (Super Smash Bros. on 3DS). It was kept like new, I played it for 100 or so hours, boxed it, then last year I went to play it and it doesn't load. As far as I know, there are only two games for 3DS this can happen to, Pokemon Ruby / Sapphire and Smash Bros.

I have games as far back as Atari and everything in between and they all still work great (knock on wood). It stinks to hear you have had stuff stop functioning.

The gaming environment is so weird now with emulation and digital backups of physical media so I feel like there is no real way to totally lose a game anymore as long as you are open to playing ROMs. I think both digital and physical have their pros and cons, and with digital gaming only now reaching a point of longevity can we really start seeing if it will pay off having a digital library with these marketplaces.

One scary inevitability is that games purchased on Wii Shop are available to re-download 'for the time being'. They go further to elaborate: 'The ability to re-download WiiWare and Virtual Console games will also stop at some point.'

https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/27560/~/wii-shop-channel-discontinuation#s1q3