Telltale Games

It's time for another installment of our ongoing "Hey Telltale, Whatcha Been Playing?" series where we give you a look at which video games the team that makes some of your favorite games are playing themselves. This time we have a producer that's working on a game that happens to be releasing next week (Hint: it's Jurassic Park: The Game), Chris Shroyer!

Without further ado, here's what Chris has been playing:

"A few weeks ago I picked up a 3DS and while I’ve found a bunch of fun games on the platform, the one that has me hooked is actually DS game. Kirby Mass Attack looks like just another platformer on the surface, but the stylus-only controls and highly experimental level design makes it one of the freshest experiences I’ve played in a long time. Throughout the story mode you’ll guide an army of Kirbys to stomp on anything that crosses your path while solving some just-challenging-enough puzzles and discovering a bunch of secret passages/items/doohickeys along the way. While this is worth the price of admission by itself, the game really shines when it comes to its additive mini-games. These cleverly designed distractions vary in size and scope from a simple Simon Says button matching twitch-fest to a 5-level vertical scrolling shooter in the vein of the Star Soldier games.

When I’m playing on my PC I’m almost always found in front of Blocks That Matter, a platform-puzzler where players are cast in the role of a tiny, blocked-shaped robot that must save indie-game developers Alexey Pajitnov and Markus Persson. It’s the kind of game that would appeal to folks like me that dream of an update to strange puzzle games like Solomon’s Key or Adventures of Lolo. The puzzles are the good kind of challenging, the controls are just right, and fans of indie platformers will see a host of character cameos (in block form, of course).
 
Looking ahead, I can barely stand the wait for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and eagerly await release dates for The Last Guardian and Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2."

Hey Telltale Fans, whatcha been playing? Let's hear it in the comments!

Ok, I know we're a couple of days late in posting the awesomeness that is the variety of costumes some of the Telltale Team came dressed as on All Hallows' Eve but it was worth the wait! 

Halloween is a lot of fun here at Telltale HQ and the spooky spirit of the day claws its way into nearly every bit of the office! This year was no exception, with folks pulling out all the stops on their ghastly garments for all to see - including you, the fair Telltale fans! 

After the jump, find photos of all the creepy costumes the Telltale Team wore proudly!

So, without further ado, we present to you, the Telltale Halloween 2011!

Getting a game prepped and ready for release to the public is a lot of hard work, and few know that more than the Telltale QA crew. When one of our titles is nearing go-time, the fine folks in our QA department put in long days (and nights and weekends) to make sure everything is ready to rock on time. Since most of QA are not robots, they sometimes need to take a break in their poring over builds of our games and well…eat. I took a few minutes to chat with our QA team to find out what keeps them ticking and testing, so here's a little bit of insight into what their preferred sources of sustenance are!

It's worth noting that most of these establishments are local to San Rafael, California so playing the Telltale QA Team home game may not be 100% possible for all.

Sol Food - The establishment that was immediately brought up was a local Puerto Rican cuisine spot called Sol Food. This place is a staple for many at the Telltale Games office, though the fact that Sol Food delivers their delicious Latin dishes keeps them at the front of QA's speed dial.

Pizza - Pretty self-explanatory here. Pizza is often the go-to grub as it easily feeds a group, both in terms of placing an order and in sheer quantity. Though the basic premise of a pizza pie is simple, the QA team usually chooses one of the nearby pizza joints, Extreme Pizza or Brooklyn Pizza Company, to cull their hunger.

Donuts - A tasty tradition has begun in the QA department. Wednesday mornings, one of the generous members of the QA team brings a batch of donuts to satiate the sweet teeth of our test team, and luckily, the rest of the downstairs Telltale office (where I am fortunate enough to sit). On the most special of Wednesdays he makes a stop at local shop Donut Alley, the home of The Baconator. What is The Baconator you ask? It's a maple donut sprinkled with the most unhealthy, yet delectable, bits of bacon.

Honorable Mentions - While Puerto Rican food, pizza, and donuts round out the heavy hitters of QA's aliments, there are a couple of spots that they mentioned help keep their taste buds guessing. Quiznos is a new addition to the lineup that may soon be among the pantheon of greats. Starbucks runs are essential for that late afternoon kick after a day of testing. Regional favorite In-N-Out is also a frequent choice for lunch on days where there's a bit of extra time as the nearest location is a few freeway exits away.

So now you know what the Telltale QA team chows down on while they test and play our games; what are some of your preferred gaming treats?

For the Back to the Future fans out there, Nike has recently announced that they're launching the almost real deal pair of Nikes that Marty McFly wears in Back to the Future: Part 2 in the form of the Nike MAG shoe!

These shoes look just like the self-lacing shoes that Marty wore to fit into Hill Valley of 2015 with the light-up feature but don't actually lace themselves up - yet. Nike has filed a patent for the self-lacing technology so it's very possible we'll be seeing another iteration on the MAGs in the future!

Getting your hands (or feet) on a pair of these hot sneakers may not be as easy as Marty had it as there are only 1,500 pairs being manufactured and they're all being auctioned off, but the proceeds from the purchase of these shoes goes directly to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research so it's for a great cause! 

• Check out the Nike MAG auction page at eBay