Overwatch: First Strike (partially found cancelled graphic novel; 2016)

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Firststrike img.jpg

Cover for the comic.

Status: Lost


Overwatch: First Strike was a cancelled comic based off of the successful 2016 game Overwatch. It was supposed to be a 100-page licensed graphic novel made by Dark Horse Comics, written by Micky Neilson and illustrated by Ludo Lullabi. The comic was originally planned for a digital release in November 2016, with a hard cover release some time in 2017.

The comic was supposed to be about Overwatch, the elite international strike team that was assembled to save humanity. It was also supposed to reveal the origins of Jack Morrison, Gabriel Reyes, Ana Amari, Torbjorn Lindholm, and Reinhardt Wilhelm, years before the game, during the Omnic Crisis.

It was oddly not seen at Blizzcon 2016 (Nov.4 - Nov. 5), which led to people speculating about its cancellation. These theories were confirmed on November 19th, 2016, when lead writer at Blizzard, Michael Chu, posted this on the BattleNet Forums.

"Hey everyone,

I wanted to let you know that we have decided to cancel the release of the Overwatch: First Strike graphic novel. While we are grateful to the team for the fantastic work they put into it, we've ultimately decided to take the story in a different direction.

The original idea for the graphic novel dates back to the early days of the game's development and came from our desire to tell the story of the founding of Overwatch during the Omnic Crisis. In the years since First Strike's conception, we have done a lot of development on the universe and its stories. While the core of this story remains, we have changed and expanded upon how we see the events that took place during the first days of Overwatch.

So for now the early adventures of Gabriel Reyes, Jack Morrison, Ana Amari, Reinhardt Wilhelm, Torbjörn Lindholm (and more!) wait for another day. But we know that this is a story that you are excited about, and it's one we still plan to tell.

I'd like to thank everyone for the enthusiasm, passion, and support you've shown towards the Overwatch universe. We have a number of stories in development that will delve deeper into the world and its heroes, and we can't wait to share them with you in the coming months.

Michael"

As of November 20th, 2016, three pages of the comic have been released to the public with no text. It is unknown if they will be used anywhere, or if the rest of the pages will be released.