Category: Announcements

Nexus Game Fair Set for Milwaukee Debut

Nexus Game Fair Returns Summer Gaming Conventions to Milwaukee

After a 12 year hiatus, summer convention gaming returns to the city of Milwaukee with the inaugural show of Nexus Game Fair which is set for June 19-22, 2014. With hundreds of individual events planned, an extensive line-up of industry special guests and VIPs, Nexus Game Fair is ready for success.

“Gamers are interested in affordable, centrally located destinations,” says show founder Chris Hoffner, “and Milwaukee has both great history and nostalgia for game conventions, having hosted both the Gen Con and Origins Game Fairs.  Milwaukee is also a great travel destination, with an international airport, professional sports teams and internationally known breweries.”

Events Manager, Harold Johnson, is the former director of Gen Con who led that show to grow to over 20,000 attendees during the 1990s.  “We’re very excited about our inaugural year,” says Johnson, “and we’re confident in our ability to run a well organized, event focused show.  We’ve already committed to 3 years worth of show dates and look forward to extending our stay in Milwaukee indefinitely.”

Nexus Game Fair has already signed a number of industry special guests, including Jolly Blackburn (Knights of the Dinner Table), Mike Carr (Dawn Patrol), Chris Clark (Inner City Games Designs), Bob Coggins (Napoleon’s Battles), Dave “Zeb” Cook (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition), Jeff Easley (Staff Artist, TSR, Inc.), Todd Fisher (Revolution & Empire), Matt Forbeck (Deadlands), Ernie Gygax (Gygax Magazine), Tim Kask (Dragon Magazine), Dave Kenzer (Hackmaster), James Lowder (Author, Prince of Lies), Frank Mentzer (Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set), Merle Rasmussen (Top Secret), Jim Ward (Gamma World), Skip Williams (Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition) and more.

“We’re not just providing our attendees with the chance to personally meet these prestigious industry notables,” says Johnson, “but also to game with them.  Nexus Game Fair is committed to offering a variety of high quality events to our attendees.  We’ve partnered with demo and organized play teams from several industry leading companies, including Paizo’s Pathfinder Society and Catalyst Game Studios’ Shadowrun Missions, in order to bring a phenomenal array of events to our show.”

For more information, please visit http://www.nexusgamefair.com

Like them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/nexusgamefair

Follow them on Twitter at https://twitter.com/nexusgamefair

The Dreamer Volume 3 coming March 2014

IDW announced today that the next release in the graphic novel series “The Dreamer” will hit stores in March 2014. The Dreamer Volume 3: The Battlle of Harlem Heights (ISBN9781613778869) is the third and final book in the story arc The Consequence of Nathan Hale and will be available in comic book stores as well as book trade venues. The Dreamer has been nominated for numerous Harvey Awards and is a fan favorite among comic book and mainstream readers alike. Print versions of books 1 and 2 are still available in both print and digital formats.

Innes explains “You don’t need to be a history buff or comic book fan to love my book, The Dreamer. The reason the book resonates with readers is it’s filled with romance, action and adventure that anyone can relate to. The fact that much of this actually happened is only backdrop to the story, but it makes it much richer.”

What others have said about The Dreamer:

“There is not a single misstep in the entire book. To say I’m hooked is a huge understatement. I’m buying this volume, the previous volume and will preorder the next volume.”  —FirstComicNews.com

“That this beautiful work is paired to a pitch-perfect story at once epic and intimate, both serious and playful, that straddles a teenage present and our nation’s most dramatic past is a testament to a creativity that knows no bounds.” —Michael Frost Beckner, producer of Spy Games

“The best books in life are the one you’re surprised by — the ones where you see the cover and think, “Huh. This looks cool.”…and then you don’t come up for air until you’ve read all the way through to the end. That’s what happened with Lora Innes’s The Dreamer.” —Fantasy Magazine

Book 4 in the series is planned for 2016.

About The Dreamer Volume 3:

Bea Whaley’s vivid dreams about the American Revolution continue in this all-new graphic novel! In the 21st Century Bea’s friends and family begin to suspect that something is wrong, but Bea knows she cannot tell them about her dreams. As tensions rise, she struggles to return to the 18th century, where her friends’ lives are threatened by the ever growing war – and this time, she just might be too late to save them.

Visit www.thedreamercomic.com for more information.

Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Dreamer-Comic/146005828774488

Follow Creator Lora Innes on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LoraInnes

About The Dreamer
Creator Lora Innes writes and illustrates the tale of 17-year-old Beatrice “Bea” Whaley, a student who begins having vivid dreams about a brave and handsome soldier named Alan Warren… a member of an elite group known as Knowlton’s Rangers that fought during the Revolutionary War. Prone to keeping her head in the clouds, Bea welcomes her nightly adventures in 1776; filled with danger and romance they give her much to muse about the next day. But it is not long before Beatrice questions whether her dreams are simply dreams or something more…

EW Offers First Glance at OUTLANDER’s Claire and Frank

from EW:
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Starz’ upcoming fantasy drama Outlander promises to bring to life a beloved time-travel romance novel series life as well as return Battlestar Galactica showrunner Ron Moore to TV. As readers of Diana Gabaldon’s books are well aware, the story follows Claire (Caitriona Balfe), a married combat nurse in the 1940s who’s vacationing with her husband (Tobias Menzies) in Scotland. Claire falls through a time-travel portal to the 18th century, where she falls in love with a young warrior (Sam Heughan). Above is the first photo from the show’s 1945 era and below we have a interview with Moore, who in addition to showrunning Outlander is also producing the promising Syfy thriller Helix. Moore gives us some details about Outlander, as well as touches on HBO’s fantasy hit Game of Thrones, and the potential TV future of some franchises he’s previously worked on (namely, Star Wars and Star Trek).

 

See the complete article here!

LOVE TRIANGLE!! ROMANTIC COMEDY!! GANG WARFARE?! MANGA FANS ARE INVITED TO CATCH THE PRINT DEBUT OF NISEKOI FROM VIZ MEDIA IN JANUARY

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It’s False Love And Hate At First Sight In This Hilarious Manga Series About A Pair Of Mismatched Lovers That Kicks Off 2014

VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, delivers laugh-out-loud fun as it announces the print debut of Volume 1 of the comedy manga (graphic novel) series NISEKOI on January 7th, 2014. The hit series by creator Naoshi Komi will be published under the company’s SHONEN JUMP imprint, rated ‘T’ for Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN.

It’s hate at first sight—or rather, a knee-to-the-head at first sight—when Raku Ichijo meets Chitoge Kirisaki! Unfortunately, Raku’s gangster father arranges a false love match between Raku and their rival gang leader’s daughter, who just so happens to be Chitoge! Raku’s searching for his childhood sweetheart from ten years ago, however, with a pendant around his neck as a memento…but he can’t even remember the girl’s name or face!

NISEKOI, Volumes 1-6 are also available for digital download for $6.99 (USD/CAN) each on VIZManga.com and through the VIZ MANGA App for the Apple iPad®, iPhone® and iPod® touch, Android-powered smart phones, and also for NOOK, KOBO, and KINDLE tablets and devices. With one account, registered VIZ Manga users are able to view digital manga purchases across even more devices than ever and the platform currently features over 2,000 volumes across 170 different series.

“North American manga fans got their first taste of NISEKOI when VIZ Media launched it simultaneously in our WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP digital manga magazine on the same day as the Japanese debut, and the buzz on this series has grown ever since,” says Amy Yu, Editor. “Raku and Chitoge must pretend to be in a relationship to maintain the peace between their fathers’ warring yakuza factions, but false love is easier said than done—especially once an overprotective bodyguard, a dangerous female assassin and a mysterious girl claiming to be Raku’s fiancée appear! Fans and readers won’t want to miss all the drama and action as we kick off 2014 with the print debut of this great series!”

Manga creator Naoshi Komi’s first serialized title in Japan’s Weekly Shonen Jump was the series, Double Arts. His current series, NISEKOI, is currently serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump and in North America in VIZ Media’s WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP digital manga magazine.

For more information on NISEKOI, or other manga titles from VIZ Media, please visit www.VIZ.com.

Cometh the Irish, Cometh the Heroes, the time has come for the greatest Hero Ireland ever knew to awaken

Finn McCool IndieGoGo campaign is live

For the first time ever, in graphic novel form, comes Finn McCool the legendary hero of ancient Ireland. Passionate creator and historian Chris Brosnan has captured the hearts and minds of Irish (in ethnicity and in spirit) with his campaign to tell the story of Finn McCool. Who was Finn McCool?: The warrior chief who founded the elite bodyguard to the High Kings of ancient Ireland, the Fianna and saviour to his land. Finn now reemerges after thousands of years as the legendary hero, mentor, return from the underworld, to claim his rightful place amongst the hero elite. A high quality hardcover graphic novel chronicling his story can be yours via Indiegogo.

Perks range from: 1. Signed copies of the graphic novel from creator Chris Brosnan 2. Membership to the clan McCool with signed and dated tribal certificate. 3. Your name engraved onto the “Warrior Wall of Heroes” on our dedicated Finn McCool website. 4. Signed copies of the original artwork of Finn McCool from our artists John Walters and Courtney Davis. 5. Live storytelling at your event from the creator of the Finn McCool graphic novel, Chris Brosnan. 6. Journey to Ireland and tour of the ancients sites and locations of the Finn McCool myths accompanied by traditional Irish storytellers.

You’ve seen “Braveheart” “Highlander” “Rob Roy” “Brave” all great stories and ALL Scottish…  Now, Cometh the Irish … Cometh the heroes … The time has come for the greatest hero Ireland ever knew to awaken and with him, the ancient Gods and Goddesses of the underworld, the realm of faery, the sídhe. Finn sends out a timeless call to the wild, to re-forge the Fianna of old and live again as the rightful protectors of Ireland and the warrior Kings of old … FINN McCOOL – Celtic Ireland’s Greatest Hero.

As if that wasn’t enough! When you are dust, how will you be remembered?

By supporting this project you will literally create for yourself, and kin, a lasting legacy that you can feel deeply proud of. Part of what the Finn McCool stories stands for is the mentoring and initiation of our youth, by providing young people with a safe, integral and beautiful setting for them to explore their personal power, while being mentored onto the pathway of adulthood by trustworthy mentor figures. The producers of the Finn McCool project, supports the Irish Youth Foundation charity. The mission of IYF is to provide opportunities for children and young people facing adverse and extreme conditions to experience success in their lives. A percentage of profits made from the graphic novel of Finn McCool, will be donated to this inspiring charity based in Dublin, Ireland. http://www.iyf.ie

Like us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/FinnMcCoolTheMovie
Follow us on Twitter at:https://twitter.com/FinnMcCoolmovie
Visit our website at: www.Finn-McCool.com

What Do You Get When You Combine Simon Bisley Art with Hitman Absolution Videogame Writers? The 13 COINS e-Comic Series

Comics Illuminati Deem Simon Bisley’s 13 COINS 3D Covers “Mind-blowing.”

Set in New York City, 13 Coins promises to explain the origin of “…every evil, every horror, every legend man has ever known.” It is the story of a secret war between descendants of angels against descendants of demons, and both sides fighting to claim a young man who is the key to Earth’s future…or Heaven’s fall.  

13 COINS, the e-comic series about the bloody battle between good and evil being fought on our earth by half-human, half-Nephilims vs. the Fallen Angels, is the brainchild of Hitman Absolution videogame writers Martin Brennan and Michael B. Jackson, who partner with Simon Bisley on 3D covers (using an innovative new 3D graphics engine) and interior pencil art, and colorist Ryan Brown. In short, it’s a creative dream team. The third book in the series launches on Friday morning at 12:01 a.m. via the Apple iOS app store, available for iPads iPhones. The 13 COINS App is free.

As a nod to the fans, pulisher orinthian Productions Ltd. is offering 13 COINS Issue #1 for free for a limited time, and for the next seven days, they will be offering Issue #2 for just 99 cents.  Issue #3 will retail for $2.99 USD.

For more information and updates on 13 COINS, please visit the following links:

Facebook: http://facebook.com/13CoinsComic

Twitter: http://twitter.com/13CoinsComic

Website: http://13CoinsComic.com

13 Coins Free iTunes Store App: http://appstore.com/13coinscomic

13 Coins Simon Bisley 3D Cover Art Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nbVNPbnfho

Hatter M: Love of Wonder and Looking Glass Wars: Millinery Academy come to Kickstarter

 

New York Times best-selling author Frank Beddor (Looking Glass Wars trilogy) recently launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the publishing of his Hatter M graphic novel series and his latest prose series for fans of the LGW mythos.

Hatter M, Volume 5: Love of Wonder will be the FINAL graphic novel in the award-winning Hatter M Series and available to Kickstarter backers FIRST.

The campaign has been 20% funded in less then 24 hours from launch! Visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/149372651/the-looking-glass-wars-hatter-m to participate.

In addition, fans asked for another prose series from Frank and the result is Volume 1 of Looking Glass Wars: Millinery Academy.

Discover a young Hatter Madigan as a cadet attending the fabled Millinery Academy where he is trained to protect Wonderland’s Queens.

Beddor commented “It’s a great time to be creative, and I am so lucky to have such a remarkable platform to bring new work to life.”

LOOKING GLASS WARS: MILLINERY ACADEMY

Swordplay! Newfound friendships! School bullies! Budding love! Self-serving rivals! Scheming adults and soulless rebel plotters! Welcome to the world of Cadet Hatter Madigan, who has just entered Wonderland’s Millinery academy as one of the freshmen ‘Brims’. Those born to be Royal Bodyguards are trained at one of the four academies(Heart, Clubs Diamond, Spade) linked to the royal houses. Cadets will study the mystic and martial arts, as well as the sometimes more difficult art of successfully dealing with others. Once Hatter begins his training he is thrown into a competitive world of both boys and girls vying to be the best. Arsenal cubes, blade chasers and Hat blocking 101 are all rites of passage the young milliners first take on together but must eventually perfect, separately.

HATTER M: LOVE OF WONDER

In the 5th and final volume, looking glasses shatter as our worlds collide and characters from Wonderland increasingly cross over to aid or block Hatter in his single-minded quest to find Alyss and bring her home. Redd’s Black Imagination has ruled Wonderland for 13 years without fear of reprisal and now the specter of Alyss’ return to claim the throne has unleashed a storm of paranoiac rage. Hatter Madigan is at the center of this crusade as he must simultaneously battle the enemies of wonder as well as his own beliefs and loyalties. All paths through time and space, through blood and steel, from his world to our world, have led Hatter Madigan to this moment — a life or death confrontation with the only warrior in the Looking Glass Wars universe capable of defeating him and destroying the love of wonder.

www.facebook.com/goaskalyss

http://frankbeddor.com/

http://www.lookingglasswar.com/

https://twitter.com/frankbeddor

Dead @ 17: The Battle for Darlington Hills Deck-Building Card Game


Take on the role of Nara or Pitch in a battle between the holy resurrected and a seemingly endless army of demons –with original art from Josh Howard, creator, writer, and artist of ‘Dead @ 17’.

Never Peak Games, an independent producer of board and card games, announced the Dead @ 17: The Battle for Darlington Hills deck-building game. Josh Howard has been writing and illustrating comics for 10 years and is best know of the indie horror series Dead @ 17, published by Image Comic. His other credits include Black Harvet(Image), Clubbing (DC/Minx), Ghostbusters: Con-Volution (IDW), and The Lost Books of Eve (Viper). He is currently at work on the seventh installment of Dead @ 17, scheduled for release in 2014. Funding for the game is now taking place on Kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/neverpeakgames/josh-howards-dead-17-battle-for-darlington-hills

The world of Josh Howard’s Dead @ 17 comes to life as players take on the role of Nara and her friends or relentless demons fighting a war for our souls. The battle rages through the streets of Darlington Hills where players must use every weapon they can get their hands on to protect our world or destroy it. Who will be victorious in this epic clash of good vs. evil? Using their starting decks, players will earn powerful cards and enhancements to fight for control of the familiar locations in the Dead @ 17 universe. Demons must be banished before the gates of Hell are opened.

Featuring 209 cards, 3 large location tokens, and 39 resource tokens with Kickstarter rewards and stretch goals that include an exclusive backer-only Dead @ 17 comic, promo cards, and multiple expansions.


Dead @ 17 is currently seeking funding at www.kickstarter.com. For more information about Dead @ 17 the board game, please visitwww.neverpeakgames.com.

About Never Peak Games

Founded in 2011, Never Peak Games is an independent producer of board and card games. Never Peak Games is looking to make its mark on the hobby gaming industry by combining amazing art with compelling game play that will keep players coming back to the table.

VIZ MEDIA BRINGS THE ACTION IN NEW BLU-RAY AND DVD HOME VIDEO EDITIONS FOR THE SCI-FI FANTASY ANIME SERIES ACCEL WORLD

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From Reki Kawahara, The Creator Of SWORD ART ONLINE, A Bullied Teen Finds Power And Strength In A Virtual Reality Video Game; Special Premium Art Booklet Included As A Free Gift With Purchase From Select Online Anime Retailers

VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, invites fans to accelerate with the home video release of the ACCEL WORLD anime series on DVD and Blu-ray on November 26th. The new 2-disc set features 12 episodes of the sci-fi fantasy series, is rated ‘TV-14,’ and carries a DVD MSRP of $44.82 U.S. / 43.24 CAN; Blu-ray MSRP is $59.97 U.S. / $66.15 CAN. Preorders are available now through select retailers.

A special 48-page premium art booklet featuring art and character profiles from this popular series and is also included (only while supplies last) as a special free gift with purchase from select online anime retailers including Right Stuf, Anime Pavilion, and Robert’s Anime Corner Store.

ACCEL WORLD dialogue features include English and Japanese stereo audio, English subtitles, as well as a character art gallery, clean opening and closing segments, and the original Japanese broadcast trailers.

In the year 2046, people use portable devices called Neuro-linkers to manage their daily lives in virtual reality networks. But advances in technology haven’t managed to do away with bullies, and 13-year-old Haruyuki Arita finds himself a frequent target. Haruyuki escapes his miserable life in virtual games – until the day Kuroyukihime, the most popular girl in school, introduces him to a mysterious program called Brain Burst and a virtual reality called the Accel World. This set contains Episodes 1-12 on 2 discs.

“ACCEL WORLD is the hottest new anime title to join the VIZ Media home video library and we are very excited to also offer it to buyers with a gorgeous, full-color bonus art booklet that is only available for a limited time through select anime retailers,” says Charlene Ingram, Senior Manager, Animation Marketing. “This series blends a highly imaginative online game with real world impact and adds a new twist to one teen’s solution to being bullied. ACCEL WORLD quickly became a fan favorite since VIZ Media debuted it on the same day as its Japanese broadcast and we look forward to the series drawing in new and veteran fans alike with this exciting release that arrives in time for the start of the holiday season.”

ACCEL WORLD is based on a series of popular light novels written by Reki Kawahara (Sword Art Online) and was produced by the famed anime studio Sunrise (TIGER & BUNNY, Mobile Suit Gundam, Code Geass, Cowboy Bebop, KEKKAISHI). Kawahara entered the first novel in the series into ASCII Media Works’ 15th Dengeki Novel Prize in 2008 and won the Grand Prize. ACCEL WORLD has also inspired a popular manga series and several video games.

For more information on ACCEL WORLD and other animated titles from VIZ Media please visit www.VIZAnime.com/accelworld

Comics Return to Grocery Stores

Nemo Publishing announced today a partnership with the Hannaford grocery chain to sell a special bundle pack of The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli graphic novels in the front end racks at 75 Hannaford stores all across New England.

Capt’n Eli is the son of the infamous Captain Nemo from Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.  The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli takes readers into a mesmerizing world of time travel, high-tech ships, flying mini-subs, robots, lost civilizations, and undersea empires in conflict;accompanied by Jolly Roger, a 200-year-old parrot, and the faithful seadog Barney.

The bundle pack includes Books 1 and 2 in the series for $9.99.  Each book normally retails for $9.99 so this limited time special is buy- one-get-one-free and is offered only at Hannaford supermarkets.  Book 3 in the series is expected out in 2014.  Nowhere near New England? You can order the same buy-one-get-one-free deal atwww.captneli.com.

“A good grocery store is much more then just a place to buy food,” explains Ed Crockett, president of Capt’n Eli’s Soda.  “They have become our drugstores and, based off the necessity and frequency we visit them, they are often our newsstands. Hannaford is a forward thinking family grocer and realized that bringing in the Capt’n Eli graphic novel series was a great way to do more for their customers.”

Creator Jay Piscopo notes “The 10 year old in me is thrilled. I get to give a whole new generation of kids the same experience I enjoyed as a kid!  Open a comic and escape into a world you can only imagine. It’s magical.”  Jay is the founder of Nemo Publishing and writes and illustrates The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli series.

Nemo Publishing was an organic creation through the Forsley family, founders of Capt’n Eli’s Soda.  One man’s sense of adventure was so strong that a root beer was created in his memory, and that spark just wouldn’t stop. Capt’n Eli’s Root Beer became the Capt’n Eli’s line of sodas and then an entire graphic novel and toy line was developed through Nemo Publishing.  The story keeps growing right along with the company and continues the wide range of products and quality that Capt’n Eli’s Soda is known for.

About The Books:

The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli — Volume 1

Fans of classic adventure, meet Capt’n Eli! Created in the tradition of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers, this is the story of a boy with extraordinary scientific abilities and unusual ties to the sea. Join Eli as he dives into the Sargasso Sea and meets the mysterious Golden Age hero Commander X. Featuring pin-ups by comics greats Steve Rude, Herb Trimpe and Howard Chaykin. Cover by Steve Rude.
6×9, 104 Pages, Full Color

The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli — Volume 2
Stand by for adventure! Volume 2 of The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli explodes with action as the mysterious Commander X introduces Capt’n Eli to a world of vast undersea empires. For all ages, this issue is a tribute to the Silver Age of comics and is an imaginative blend of solid comics storytelling and 3-D CGI. Featuring pin-ups by legendary comics artist Herb Trimpe, Joe Zierman of Big Bang Comics, and artist and animator Lauren Monardo. Cover by Joe Zierman.
6×9, 112 Pages, Full Color

Want to learn more about the line?

Visit www.captneli.com
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CaptnEli
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CaptnEli