Drone Swarm stillalive
451 Media Group will exclusively premier nine graphic novels, created by top Hollywood writers of "The Deuce", "X-Men First Class", "The Fast and Furious" and other blockbusters, at this year's New York Comic Con. (PRNewsfoto/451 Media Group) 451 Media Group

TV networks, movie companies and streaming services today are thriving with visual treats from the world’s top comic book and video game publishers. Michael Bay’s 451 Media Group is expanding the playing field by further merging the worlds of graphic novels, media entertainment and technology under its roof.

Game developer still alive studios and remote control productions GmbH (RCP) announced on Oct. 6 that they are working with 451 Media on a massive project. The companies will launch the forthcoming sci-fi strategy game “Drone Swarm” as original graphic novel and television content.

Meanwhile, in the same week at New York Comic Con (NYCC), 451 Media unveiled nine new graphic novels. These titles were all created by celebrated and critically acclaimed TV and movie writers.

Content as versatile visual experience

Indeed, comic book fans and video gamers are being spoiled these days. They get various kinds of visual experience on different platforms, as productions continue to evolve to develop more cutting-edge content. The market’s overall response to comic-turned-TV show or movie, as well as games turned movies, tells investors there is much to gain from adapted content.

“The Walking Dead” from Image Comics will return on Oct. 22 on AMC for its eighth season and 100th episode. “Inhumans” premiered in September on ABC, which also airs “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” (now on its fifth season). Both shows are from Marvel. The CW airs “Arrow,” “Supergirl” and “The Flash” – all from Warner Bros. DC Universe (DCU).Netflix will soon deliver the second season of “Jessica Jones” and “Luke Cage,” both from Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

Comic books are undeniably a great source of compelling narratives that can draw fevered appreciation from both television and cinema audiences. “X-Men”, “Batman” and “Avengers” are just few of the comic-turned-movies that saw varying degrees of multi-million-dollar success at the box office.

Video games as movies

Video games have also been known to inspire crowd-drawing movie productions. Over ten years ago, Legendary Pictures and game developer Blizzard Entertainment launched a collaborative effort to produce “Warcraft.” The game-turned movie fetched over $400 million in the box office in 2016.

MGM and Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Tomb Raider” movie reboot slated for Spring 2018--Alicia Vikander’s takes on Angelina Jolie’s former role--is already circled on calendars of fans. Other examples include Assassin’s Creed, Prince of Persia, Mortal Kombat, the Resident Evil franchise and many others.

451 delving deeper into AR, VR and mixed reality

Bay’s 451 Media is optimistic in its bid to leverage fan support in growing its empire. Fans of games, comics, TV and movies are always appreciative of quality content. Serve them with aesthetically appealing high-tech effects, and they will take it as icing on the cake.

Its collaborative work with still alive and RCP holds a lot of promise on the future of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality. Gamers who enjoyed the early VR compatible adventure game “Son of Nor” and more recently, “Bus Simulator” (Astragon), know that still alive is serious about its tech goals for the world’s gamers.

For its part, independent production house RCP has a lot to bring to the tri-party collaboration for Drone Swarm. Munich-based RCP has 14 game development studios across four countries, a gamification unit and an in-house publisher. Its imprint is on Angry Birds Evolution and Angry Birds, among many others.

Drone Swarm for heroes of planet Earth

As a technology-focused intellectual property (IP) development and entertainment company, 451 Media is raising the bar for content creators, particularly those exploring AR, VR and mixed reality. “Drone Swarm” does not have an official release date yet, but gamers can check out the trailer on YouTube.

Based on the trailer, “Drone Swarm” is set to captivate players in its deep space setting. The players will save Earth by battling drone swarms, which are under the control of a dark unknown force. Fans can experience the game in multiple ways: comic book panels, game consoles and TV.

"We are super excited to partner with the 451 Media team as we were looking for exactly their kind of passion and great talent to collaboratively expand the universe of Drone Swarm beyond the videogame,” said Julian Mautner, founder and CEO of still alive studios.

On top of its partnership with still alive and RCP for “Drone Swarm,” 451 has also collaborated with some of the most creative minds in Hollywood today to release nine new graphic novels.

451 Media Group launches graphic novels by Hollywood creators

Among the nine new titles from 451 Media is “S6X”by author and screenwriter George Pelecanos, co-creator of “The Deuce” (HBO). Pelecanos also wrote for and ran the third season of “The Wire” (HBO). He was also a writer and co-producer at “The Pacific” (HBO).“S6X” tells the gripping story of six soldiers who reunite for a final mission to protect one of their own.

Here are the other graphic novels from 451 and Hollywood’s celebrated creators: “Red Dog” from “The Fast and The Furious” writer Rob Cohen; “NVRLND” from Stephanie Salyers and Dylan Mulik; “Stained” from comic pro David Baron (“Green Arrow,” “Planetary,” “Green Lantern”); “Self-storage” from Clay McLeod Chapman, the writer of “The Boy,”“Henley,”“Edge of Spider-Verse” and “Marvel's Universe Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes.”Fans of “The Wolfman” and “Sons of Anarchy” should also check out 451’s “Bad Moon Rising,” from writer and producer Scott Rosenberg (“Con Air,”“Gone in 60 Seconds”).

451 Media’s co-founders Anthony and John Gentile are also releasing their own work: “Humbug,” a work inspired by “Sherlock Holmes” and “Ghostbusters.” The Gentile duo also created “Micronauts” and “Visionaries.”

Readers should also check out the psychological thriller “Sunflower” from “Black Mass” writer Mark Mallouk, as well as the WWII action adventure “Ex Mortis” from Paul and Pete Williams, who were the visual effects genius behind Avatar, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Chronicles of Narnia.

American filmmaker Michael Bay is known for taking the helm of big movie productions like “Armageddon”, “Pearl Harbor” and the “Transformers” movies. He co-founded 451 Media with brand creators Anthony and John Gentile, as well as Doug Nunes, who serves as the current CEO.