Penny Arcade (Webcomic)/WMG

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


Penny Arcade, PVP, and Megatokyo are all part of the same universe

Penny Arcade and PVP in particular reference one another fairly frequently and ever since Scott Kurtz moved into the Penny Arcade offices in 2010 the amount of references and stylistic similarities have only increased. Megatokyo and Penny Arcade have made a few references to one another in the past as well, with at least one nod towards PVP in Megatokyo. Additionally, all three webcomics started within two years of one another (which isn't really evidence of any connection, per se, but makes for nice synchronization).

In this model, all three webcomics are really part of a single continuity where there is No Fourth Wall or at least a very, very weak one (hence why characters so frequently get killed only to return from the dead in all three). This is, in fact, an acknowledged fact within the PVP webcomic. Additionally, each of the creators (Sufficiently Advanced Authors of course) has the capacity to enter into the universe physically (as in Jerry/Tycho, Mike/Gabe, Fred/Piro, Rodney/Largo, etc.). Some of the characters are aware that they are in a comic strip, such as the characters of PVP and possibly Gabe and Tycho) while others are completely unaware, such as (most of?) the characters of Megatokyo.

Also, for some reason, only Gabe and Tycho are actually aware that they are Sufficiently Advanced Authors, whereas both Largo and Piro are completely unaware of this fact, perhaps due to the fact that Fred Gallagher appears to have another avatar running about in the universe (mentioned in a Penny Arcade strip located at Sakura Con). Other characters are aware of this as well since although Scott Kurtz does not appear in-universe in PVP, Gabe and Tycho and the staff of Penny Arcade do.

Yeah, that's confusing. But what good Epileptic Tree isn't?

  • By extension, other web comics that might be a part of the shared continuity are The Whiteboard (whose characters cameo in PVP) and Apple Geeks, which has a long-running crossover with Megatokyo.