Tales of Comic-Con (Bandwidth Warning)

[Mike Haley]

This is my coup de grâce on Comic-Con 2009. Enjoy!

Tales of Comic-Con
By Mike Haley

Here we go again! Has it been a year already? I wrote a blog about last year's Comic-Con titled Comic-Con Adventures. It was, for the most part, a Telltale Games-centric posting. This year, I once again attended the show. It was full of exciting experiences, but sadly, there were no Telltale Games panels. As Jake Rodkin has said, Tales of Monkey Island consumed much of their panel planning time.


You cannot walk five feet without someone bumping into you. At one point, someone told me to move so that they could take a photo. I did, and bumped into a bunch of other people, who proceeded to yell at me. Ah, Comic-Con.

My travel arrangements were mostly unchanged from last year, so I will skip that bit. That information is always mind numbingly boring, anyway. I arrived in San Diego around 10:10 AM on Friday, and picked up my badge. Where did I head first? If you have read this far, that should be obvious. Although the Telltale Games booth was in exactly the same place as last year, it took me a little while to find it. It is as if they hid it in the furthest corner of the convention center. Maybe if I follow the sounds of the jungle?


The Telltale Games Booth

Soon enough, I found the Telltale Games booth, and the first person that I talked to? Why, that was Dave Grossman, Telltale Games' resident game designer and witty mastermind. I was quite surprised by the fact that he was so much shorter than I. I talked to him for a good twenty minutes, and then learned that Steve Purcell would be by at 2 PM for a signing. I picked up everything that was not nailed down, and then went looking for a hammer to pry up what was. By the way, I met Steve Purcell for the first time last year.


Brütal Legend!

My next stop was the EA booth to check up on Brütal Legend. When I first walked by, Adam Sessler from G4 was conducting an interview, so there was a fairly large crowd surrounding the booth. I didn't want to get too close, anyway. I don't care for Adam Sessler or G4. Finally, the crowd began to disperse, and I was able to have a look at the awesomeness that was Brütal Legend. I didn't actually play it myself, but while watching others play it, I was instantly taken aback by its similarity to Full Throttle.


Brütal Legend reminds me a lot of Full Throttle.

Later, I returned to the Telltale Games booth for the Steve Purcell signing. This year, I brought The Age of S&M, The Effigy Mound, and Sam & Max Season Two. Oh, and the Sam & Max Season One Case File. The expression on the faces of Emily Morganti and Jake Rodkin when I pulled that out was priceless. They obviously had not seen one of those in a long while. I had them both sign it, and Steve Purcell, as well. I am sure that it would sell for quite a bit of money on eBay, but sadly, I cannot bear to part with it. On that note, I had Dave Grossman sign a copy of Ode to the Stuff in the Sink. He wrote, and I quote, "To Mike. Thanks for buying this book. Make believe I wrote something really witty here, OK? Thanks. DAVE" Yay, I managed to get everyone involved in the signing.


Steve Purcell signs my sketchbooks.

Before I left the Telltale Games booth, I also met Dan Connors, but for some truly bizarre reason, could not think of much to say. The only thing that I managed to utter was, "Hello, I am Mike Haley... from the forums." He seemed a bit confused, and then we parted ways. Stupid me! I should have started the conversation with, "Are you hiring?" I really need better ice breakers. Oh, well. I will be wiser next year.


Steve Purcell signs Sam & Max statue base boards.

Did I mention that I bought the Sam & Max statue from Symbiote Studios, and had Steve Purcell sign that, too? He did a second signing at 4 PM over at the Symbiote Studios booth. That fedora wearing man was all over the place! It was at this time that I questioned him about Sam & Max plush figures, and he said that he had been in contact with various plush companies. He also said that he had not yet decided on a style, and that he may look to the forum community for ideas.


Sam & Max

The day was drawing to a close, and I was beginning to succumb to the weight on my shoulders. Before I left, one of the new Telltale Games girls (I did not catch her name) gave me a sturdier bag to put some of my stuff in. The other bag was falling apart. I checked the time, and realized that I would have to make tracks to catch the 5:55 PM train. The next one was not until 10 PM. Thankfully, I did not get lost in San Diego this time. I knew exactly how to get back to the train station, and from now on, I will just walk. It's only a few blocks. I made only one mistake, or rather, my camera did. The strap broke, and the camera did a nose dive onto Kettner Ave. Hopefully, nobody saw that, but the camera did survive the fall. Albeit, with a few scratches here and there.

[A photo of my scratched up camera would go here, but defy explanation]

The return train trip itself was rather interesting. I sat next to someone who's first language was Italian, but spoke fairly decent English. He was asking all sorts of questions about Comic-Con, and everything that I had collected in my bags. I had to talk slow because he kept misunderstanding my "fast talk." I end this blog with a funny note. Standing up while going fifty miles an hour; not a good idea, but the train conductor told us that the Fullerton stop would be very brief, so I had to make my way down to the door five minutes beforehand. One lady almost fell over. It was hilarious.


Argh! We're loaded with booty!

As usual, more photos provided by Flickr.

Sorry, but there are no revelations about future Telltale Games in this blog. I am trying to avoid a glare from Jake Rodkin at next year's Comic-Con.

[Hero1]

Awesome report Mike! Sounds like a great day

[SHODANFreeman]

Why do I keep looking at pictures from Comic-Con? They just make me even more depressed that I couldn't go.

[ShaggE]

We need some of these cons in the northeast... :P

[PariahKing]

Ohio is a great place for conventions! >_>

[Secret Fawful]

Isn't there a convention in Chicago of some sort?

[SHODANFreeman]

I don't know, Gen Con is in Indianapolis, but it's not nearly as big as Comic-Con.

[ShaggE]

Originally Posted by PariahKing

Ohio is a great place for conventions! >_>

I should have been more specific... We need cons in Central Pennsylvania.

[Rather Dashing]

My rising envy is turning into childish RAGE.

I'm so horribly envious of the people who can afford to do this sort of thing, and even more envious of those who live close enough that it's not a very big deal to go.

[Mike Haley]

Another little interesting factoid: I handed Dave Grossman one of my Sharpie pens in order for him to sign Ode to the Stuff in the Sink, and then he handed the pen to Emily Morganti, who then handed the pen to Jake Rodkin to sign my Sam & Max Season One Case File. Somehow, in all the confusion, I forgot to ask for the pen back. So, it is still sitting somewhere inside the booth. It is too bad that I did not think to insert a microscopic camera in that pen, or I could have learned all sorts of Telltale Games secrets. Although, now that I mentioned this thought, I am sure that they will be inspecting it, anyway.

[Megaloman]

I wish there were cons like this in Sweden too. We have a sci-fi fair but it's nowhere near as large! All the other conventions around here seem to be all about boardgames, cardgames and rpgs. Anyway, nice report! Always fun seeing some of the TT staff in action.

[ShaggE]

Originally Posted by Mike Haley

So, it is still sitting somewhere inside the booth.

Hear that, Telltale? No gift basket this year. You already got a free Sharpie.

[Mike Haley]

Here is a little update. These are photos of the things that I had signed at Comic-Con.


My signed copy of The Age of S&M.


My signed copy of The Effigy Mound.


My signed copy of Ode to the Stuff in the Sink.

Also, I just now realized that my desk is full of more crap... I mean, collectible things than Dave Grossman's. I can only imagine what Strong Bad would say about it.

More signage on Flickr:
Sam & Max Season One/Two Case File
Sam & Max Season Two
Sam & Max Buttons

[guitarsareboring]

Jealous? Oh yes I am.

[Weeblerjake]

Originally Posted by ShaggE

I should have been more specific... We need cons in Central Pennsylvania.

Or maybe near, say, Mechanicsburg?

[Shwoo]

Originally Posted by Rather Dashing

My rising envy is turning into childish RAGE.

I was managing to avoid doing that until the sketchbooks were mentioned. I wish they'd be rereleased.

[Mike Haley]

Would anyone be amused by my U-Tube offering?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ9bXjp9c-Y

The video quality is less than stellar, and I did film a whole lot of nothing, but regardless, it is six minutes of video from the Telltale Games booth area. Also, on a side note, I must have accidentally hit the record button while in memory mode because I found this on my memory stick...

http://www.spaceruckus.com/storage/MOV04370.MPG (1MB)

I would have had a little more room on my camera for photos if not for that oversight. Yes, I am scraping the bottom of the barrel now. So, that pretty much concludes my Comic-Con 2009 coverage. I may think of a few other semi-interesting tidbits to write about here and there, but other than that, I do not really have anything else spectacular to show off. I will see you all at Comic-Con 2010.

[Mike Haley]

Okay, just one more update. This is what I spent my money on at Comic-Con. Be sure to read the descriptions.


Telltale Games T-Shirt* - $15


Sam & Max Symbiote Statue - $75


Homestar Runner Figurines Series 2 - $7


Mario Plush - $8


Hanging out with your favorite game company - Priceless.

* As far as I know, the Telltale Games T-Shirt is a Comic-Con exclusive.

[Sister]

Mike, Nice reporting! Great photos, thanks for sharing! The flickr selection is great! Fun, Fun, Fun, lucky you!!

[nikasaur]

Originally Posted by Mike Haley

Another little interesting factoid: I handed Dave Grossman one of my Sharpie pens in order for him to sign Ode to the Stuff in the Sink, and then he handed the pen to Emily Morganti, who then handed the pen to Jake Rodkin to sign my Sam & Max Season One Case File. Somehow, in all the confusion, I forgot to ask for the pen back. So, it is still sitting somewhere inside the booth. It is too bad that I did not think to insert a microscopic camera in that pen, or I could have learned all sorts of Telltale Games secrets. Although, now that I mentioned this thought, I am sure that they will be inspecting it, anyway.

It became very useful. I think a few of my pens were donated to the cause as well, never to be seen again.