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League of Legends’ latest update teases a fictional game called Tellstones

Four narrative tips referencing some kind of game showed up on the PBE last night

League of Legends’ tenth anniversary is fast approaching, and it looks like Riot could be gearing up to introduce something new. A series of lore snippets hidden in the files of an upcoming update refer to an in-lore game called Tellstones.

As noted by Surrenderat20, the League of Legends patch 9.20 notes include a host of new startup notes to celebrate the game’s tenth birthday. Right at the bottom of that list are four lore-based tips referring to the fictional game, suggesting that Tellstones is played across the continent of Runeterra. Also mentioned are variants of the game played by the noble Demacians, and that a potential civil war was once abated thanks to the outcome of a match.

This is not, however, the first we’ve heard of Tellstones. As pointed out on Reddit recently, Riot quietly filed a trademark for the game back in July. Details are very scarce, but the trademark’s classification points towards something heading to PC.

That’s all very well, but it doesn’t actually tell us what Tellstones is. Technology in the League of Legends universe is mostly medieval-esque (ignoring Zaun and Piltover), so I’m ruling out anything too complex. The way the game is presented in those narrative tips makes it sound like some kind of tabletop game, but that’s the only guess I’m prepared to make for now.

If that is the case, however, I’d be intrigued to see how it could play out. There’s a rich world to explore within League of Legends that very rarely gets touched on within the game itself. A standalone title that also exists within the lore could offer Riot possibilities similar to what CDPR managed with Gwent and the world of The Witcher.

This is, of course, far from the only time that Riot has mentioned a new project. From the rumoured League of Legends MMO to the recently-confirmed fighting game and Teamfight Tactics, Riot does really seem to be gearing up for its “multigame future.” And a tenth anniversary party seems just the place to announce some of those new titles.