So, anyone got any good Ewok/Back To The Future puns? The best I could do was "EndorLorean".
UPDATE: Followed up by this. We now need Ewok/Back To The Future/Spaceballs gags.
Source: CNET
Articles
Telltale's Jake Rodkin and Sean Vanaman discuss the background to Poker Night at the Inventory with GamePro, and reveal a few more tidbits about the gameplay and character interactions.
"It's easy to make the Heavy just say, 'I will murder!' at every turn, and for Tycho to freak out," explains Vanaman.
Rodkin continues, "Right, but then we have Tycho threaten to mail-order in the Heavy's sister as his wife."
"It was important to build those dynamics to make them feel natural," notes Vanaman. "Strong Bad and Tycho, for instance, hate each other -- I don't think they ever agree -- but Tycho and Max get along really well, where the Heavy is wary of Tycho, loves Max, and thinks Strongbad is a tiny Heavy."
Telltale hopes to make such dynamics believable and entertaining, but also authentic: Strong Bad, the Heavy, and Max will all be voiced by their original actors, with Tycho's debut speaking role coming courtesy of Bay Area beatboxer, vocalist, and Telltale VA vet Andrew "Kid Beyond" Chaikin.
"We want to develop this place, The Inventory, as just a cool hang-out spot for video game characters to go," says Vanaman . "We're hoping that 'At the Inventory' will start to mean something if the space is cool and the game is good."
Source: GamePro
Demonstrating rather resolutely where his loyalties lie, JP reports from the Telltale forums about a small interview with Back to the Future co-writer and producer Bob Gale about his involvement with the upcoming games conducted by Digital Spy. Here's the whole thing given its brevity:
Back to the Future Telltale Games
Telltale Games's Back To The Future episodic series is expected to start in November.
Screenwriter Bob Gale, who worked on the Back To The Future movies, has detailed his involvement in the Telltale Games project.
"I've been having story meetings and exchanging emails and phone calls with the folks at Telltale to make sure that what they develop feels like Back To The Future," he told DS.
"My understanding is that the first instalment - this is a computer game not a console game - they'll be coming out in instalments with the levels released apart, I don't know what the exact schedule is.
"I think they're looking towards the end of October, beginning of November to release the first level."
Gale teased that the story could feature an alternate timeline: "Is it canon? Not exactly, it's a game so they're not the same," he said.
"On the other hand you can say that the Back To The Future series has postulated how you could have almost infinite timelines. Who's to say that the timelines we create in the game couldn't be alternate timelines?"
He added that it will be more "consistent" than previous tie-ins with the franchise, recalling that a NES version was "just dreadful" and "one of the worst games ever made".
It was recently revealed that Christopher Lloyd will reprise his role as Doc Brown for the games.
I also want to point out this Slash Film write-up that ran right after the USA Today ("I WAS FRAMED!!!") piece broke, which claims that the series will be released for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Wii, PC and Mac. I don't think Telltale has officially announced platforms yet; it will be interesting, and certainly unprecedented, if they attempt to hit all of the above simultaneously.
Source: Digital Spy
In a short interview with Telltale's Dan Connors, he reveals to Wired that Poker Night is part of Telltale's Pilot Program.
The $5 game comes to Steam this fall for the PC and Mac and is being released as part of Telltale Games’ Pilot Program — an effort to give new, risky game concepts a chance to shine. According to Connors, the game will have to sell between 100,000 to 200,000 units to be worth reviving as a franchise.
“If this version with these game characters work, we will likely follow it up with new game characters or maybe other celebrities, rock stars and the like.”
Source: Wire
(click for enlargement)
Real?
Great? Undoubtedly.
Update: In
Bob Gale, who wrote the screenplays for the three films, is working with the game developers on the plot for the planned five "episodes"."
Another Update: You can read the full, unedited press release (The game will be out 'soon after' the 25th Anniversary movie re-releases on October 26th) on the new game teaser site.
Source: USA Today
Telltale have released more details of their 'crossover game', by adding the title to their store for pre-order.
Poker Night at the Inventory
Prepare for a different kind of poker night in a very different kind of club. In Poker Night at the Inventory, you'll deal with Penny Arcade's clever, cunning Tycho, Team Fortress 2's hulking Heavy, Homestar Runner's self-proclaimed "awesome icon" Strong Bad and the hyperkinetic "rabbity-thing" from Sam & Max. These characters come together in ways some never thought possible, in a setting few would have predicted. You'll experience a new style of poker, particularly when hands don't go the way of the other fiery competitors at the table.
Update: Some screenshots are up at Steam. Also, amazing promotional poster by Chuck BB.
Source: Telltale Games
Over in our forums in the requisite DeathSpank thread, Threepwood4life has noticed that a surprisingly story-centric <a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/video/ex...-thongs/703926
">trailer for DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue has appeared at GameTrailers. The game looks low on virtue if high on great. And yes, it seems like we'll get to explore a pirate setting in a Ron Gilbert game again after all.
For those attending PAX, it'll probably be of interest for you to know that Hothead will be showcasing the DeathSpank sequel there. The expo is otherwise saturated with awesome due to the already announced presence by Telltale, who will be letting you take pictures in front of a Delorean, presumably because the replacement of the Back to the Future ride means you can no longer do so at Universal's theme park. Not sure about Costume Quest as I couldn't find THQ's line-up following a diligent fifteen seconds on Google.
Oh, and I checked: Southpeak's PAX line-up contains neither Insecticide's second half nor a keynote apology.
Source: Lucasforums
I wonder how long it will be until Telltale can decide whether or not this was successful pilot and warrants a full season?
Kroms beat me to this news story literally by seconds, proving that he wanted it more.
Source: Telltale
Telltale's Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent has now arrived at iPad and iPhone. The iPhone version will cost you $4.99, and the iPad version $6.99. The PC/Mac version will set you back $9.95. A WiiWare version is in the works.
For those who don't know, Nelson Tethers is the debut episode of Telltale's new "Pilot Program", which, as its name suggests, aims to make one-shot episodes that test whether or not people are interested in a certain game. If people are interested, a full series is developed and vice versa. It was developed in collaboration with Grickle-creator Graham Annable, as can be seen in the game's art style and felt in the game's tone. Read Mixnmojo's review to see whether it's your cup of tea, or just take a leap of faith and buy it.
Source: Telltale Blog
Dave Grossman has written an insightful article for Gamasutra about moving toward the type of mentality it will take to bring games into the same level of ubiquitous acceptance enjoyed by television, the "Holy Grail of media mainstreamedness."
Using his mother-in-law as his test subject, the 20+ year industry veteran used the very first puzzle (which was later transformed into a tutorial) of Sam & Max: Season 1 to witness how someone completely foreign to video games would respond to interactive design he took part in - a design most gamers would probably argue is about as accessible as it gets. The results are equal parts interesting, humorous and educational.
It turned out she was playing the scene more like a find-the-hidden-object-in-the-picture game, although I had also seen her try some drawers and other non-yellow objects that might be used as containers. Further questioning revealed that it simply had not occurred to her that there might be more to the game than what was on the screen. She wasn't thinking of it as a world; she was thinking of it as a picture.
Fans of intelligent game design ruminations or just plain good writing, both being fortes of Grossman, would do well to read the whole piece.
Source: Gamasutra
Over at Eurogamer, someone managed to interview one Dmitry Andreev on LucasArts' new technology, a "framerate upscaler", which is an intriguing little thing conceived in an orgy of love, science, buckets of George Lucas's cash, lateral thinking, and a lack of Jim Ward. I quote:
This intriguing concept potentially offers all the advantages of rendering a console game at 30FPS, along with the visual smoothness and potentially even the crisper response of 60FPS gaming.
30 Mojo Cookie Pirate points to whoever can come-up with the best acronym (SCUMM, iMuse, INSANE, etc) for this thing.
Source: Eurogamer
Sam and Max: The Devil's Playhouse is on sale at Steam. What once cost me $34.99 (totally worth it) will now cost you $19.99 (probably worth it), and will continue to cost you $19.99 all the way to September 8th, 2010. Read our review of the finale here, or just skip ahead and buy the game here. If you're a little crazy, do both.
Save on saving the world! (Sorry.)
Save on saving the world! (Sorry.)
Source: Steam
Having just wrapped up their latest and strangest case, Sam and Max have directed their attention to the Telltale company store, where the collector's disc for Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse, which will include commentary and behind-the-scenes goodies, "should be available for order very soon." Steve Purcell's excellent cover art for the DVD case can be seen on the product page, and following tradition, is available as a poster print in both signed and unsigned flavors.
Then there is a collection of five mini-posters of all that cool 70s-like movie poster art that was used to promote each episode of this season, some of which if I'm not mistaken is the work of talented Telltale web art director Stephen Whetstine. Telltale is also selling those stylized Sam & Max Symbiote figures with the big heads, and on top of all that is the retro Sam & Max T-shirt from the 1992 Comic-Con that they resurrected not too long ago.
Ouch, says my wallet. At least until I get that check from Telltale for pimping all their stuff.
Source: Telltale
Today is a day of exciting releases. The first is of course the long awaited finale of The Devil's Playhouse (check out our review!) The game is apparently not quite out to season's subscribers, but it should be available before the night's through, Pacific Standard Time, so keep an eye either on your inbox or your Telltale account page. Hopefully, Kroms can refrain from flaunting his access to review copies to too many of you before then.
The second big release today is the North American retail version of Ghost Pirates of Vooju Island, almost a year after its initial release in Germany. The hand-painted pirate adventure game by Bill Tiller and his well-treated minions got an English release in the UK early this year and has been available worldwide in various digital outlets for almost as long, but today it can finally be found boxed and on store shelves in the United States and Canada. It's retailing for only $19.99, too, so you should probably show us that you're smarter than you look and order it from a place like Gamestop or Amazon (where the price is currently slashed at a ridiculous $10.86).
On the subject of Autumn Moon, you're running out of hours to submit your winning entry for the Pumpkin Post site redesign contest. Hopefully you didn't blow this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity which, not taken, would surely haunt you throughout your adult life until it is violently and mercifully syncopated by the cold grip of Death.
Anyway. Happy Monday, all!
Update: Capn_Nacho reports that The City That Dares Not Sleep is now available to season subscribers. Rev those downloads!
It’s been a long time coming, but we’re at last here at the finale of arguably the greatest series Telltale has yet produced. The Devil’s Playhouse will be revealed, characters will return, assumptions will be shattered, and shockles will be shocked. With four excellent episodes behind them, will the last one screw it all up or will it be a fitting conclusion to an epic storyline? Read on to find out! Or, y’know, play the damn thing. [spoilers for previous episodes, but no spoilers for this episode follow]
GameTrailers TV is teasing something Telltale related today (12:30 EST on SPIKE), and look likely to reveal some "very special guest stars" in the game.
From Geoff Keighley's Twitter feed: There is speculation on the Telltale Forums that some of the Back to the Future voice talent may have been cast and is going to be revealed, though something related to Sam & Max s03e05 makes more sense.
Update: The teaser has aired, you can view it here.
It is some kind of crossover game, and the teaser features four silhouettes, looking like Max, a Team Fortress Heavy, Strong Bad and Tycho from Penny Arcade.
And they're all holding cards, as can be seen in this full resolution screencapture.
So, this title will be revealed in full at PAX next week.
From Geoff Keighley's Twitter feed:
New Telltale Games teaser on tomorrow night's GTTV.....some very special guest stars in this title.
Update: The teaser has aired, you can view it here.
It is some kind of crossover game, and the teaser features four silhouettes, looking like Max, a Team Fortress Heavy, Strong Bad and Tycho from Penny Arcade.
And they're all holding cards, as can be seen in this full resolution screencapture.
So, this title will be revealed in full at PAX next week.
Source: Twitter
Telltale, like all the cool kids, will be at the Penny Arcade Expo next week. Members of the Sam & Max team and Grickle/Puzzle Agent creator Graham Annable will be on hand to answer questions, including "when's Puzzle Agent Episode 2 coming out?" I hope.
There will be Back To The Future news at last, with Telltale bringing along "an actual DeLorean Time Machine" apparently. They'll be travelling back to March 2004 and try to set right what once went wrong presumably. Or am I thinking of Quantum Leap?
And yes, as you deduced from the story title there will be "a surprise game announcement" there too. Tales of Monkey Island Season Two? Puzzle Agent Part Two? Another Pilot Program game? Who knows?!
So check it out. Bill Tiller has another portion of whatever background he's working on for whatever adventure game Autumn Moon hasn't yet announced up on Twitter, and it's the image of a dragon-shaped weather vane. Well? Does this help any of you solve the riddle of: what the hell is this awesome game about?
In other news, Mark Darin had an interview, mostly Puzzle Agent related, with Finnish game site KonsoliFIN. For those of us not Finnish, an English transcript has been posted over on the Adventure Gamers forums.
Telltale have a new designer at their joint, and his name is Straw. First name, JD. He's big and strong and possibly a she. I'm not sure. How will I know? How can I ever know? I can't know, because JD is first name-less, bio-less and, as far as I can tell, not even real. But I really, really love that name "JD Straw". It sounds like the kind of man (or woman) who could punch you, finish your drink and then flip a coin to the bartender as an apology. So, say hi to JD Straw! Hi!
Source: Telltale Games