Is Penny Arcade’s “Guitar Hero: Nirvana” Joke Funny Or Too Soon Or Just Stupid?

noah | April 22, 2009 3:30 pm

When a friend of mine sent me today’s installment of the Web comic Penny Arcade, which wants you to laugh at the “special accessories” that come with the still-theoretical Nirvana edition of Guitar Hero, I said, “Oh, ouch.” “Everybody says ouch,” he replied. And why is that?

Well because the “joke” as it were is that Guitar Hero: Nirvana comes with its own plasticized, brightly buttoned gun, you see. Suicide: It can be painless, as long as you’re working in two dimensions! Anyway, as the day has progressed, more people have been sending the comic my way, along with the de rigeur “ouch”-ish commentary. And I have yet to laugh once! Is it because I’m overly sensitive, or is the joke really just that dumb? Or should I just wait a few more years–heck, the comic’s author titled today’s strip “Maybe Too Soon”–and allow the world to progress to a moment when we can all sit back and laugh about the events of 15 years ago? Readers, I leave it up to your collective comedic wisdom to decide.

(Also: Maybe the joke would have been a little funnier with a Duck Hunt reference? OK, probably not.)

Maybe Too Soon [Penny Arcade]