Blizzard Axes Overwatch: First Strike Graphic Novel

Well, so much for that. Overwatch: First Strike, the upcoming graphic novel based on Blizzard’s latest team-based shooter, will never see the light of day, according to an announcement from Overwatch lead writer Michael Chu.

From the post, it appears that Overwatch’s narrative has evolved significantly since the game was released and the novel isn’t really compatible anymore with the direction it’s taken:

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.

Chu goes on to say that while the novel has been cancelled, the origin stories of the game’s characters are ones the company “still plan[s] to tell”, though it’s not ready just yet:

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.

Overwatch: First Strike Graphic Novel Update [Battle.net]