BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Random Games, the innovative startup behind the Unioverse entertainment franchise, today announced a partnership with independent sci-fi and horror genre publishing company Hex Publishers to create a Unioverse tie-in fiction anthology of short stories and poetry, as well as a comic book series.
The Unioverse is an epic original science fiction story, videogame series and platform for user-generated creativity launched this year by a team of gaming and entertainment industry veterans behind titles such as Grand Theft Auto, Donkey Kong Country and Crackdown. Set in the near future, the Unioverse story centers around a technology discovered on Mars that allows anyone to instantly transport their consciousness across galaxies. The narrative direction of the Unioverse is led by Brent Friedman, a master storyteller whose previous credits include writing on Star Wars: The Clone Wars, The Walking Dead, Call of Duty, and Star Trek: Enterprise.
Stories of the Reconvergence, edited by Angie Hodapp and Joshua Viola, will showcase short stories and poetry set in and inspired by the Unioverse from some of today’s most popular genre-fiction writers, including:
- Stephen Graham Jones, New York Times bestseller, Bram Stoker Award winner, Ray Bradbury Prize winner (Earthdivers, My Heart is a Chainsaw, The Only Good Indians)
- Linda D. Addison, Bram Stoker Award winner, Horror Writers Association (HWA) Lifetime Achievement Award winner (Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda, Classic Monsters Unleashed, Predator: Eyes of the Demon)
- Kevin J. Anderson, National and international bestseller (Dune, Spine of the Dragon, Star Wars, X-Files, Zombie P.I.)
A full list of all 27 authors writing Stories of the Reconvergence can be found below.
Each story will also feature its own original Unioverse artwork created by concept artist Stuart Jennett (Battlestar Galactica, Star Citizen, Warhammer), and the book will have cover art by Aaron Lovett (Cyber World, Inkbound, Monster Train). Stories of the Reconvergence will be published in Summer of 2023.
“A franchise as ambitious as the Unioverse is ripe for multi-platform storytelling,” said Joshua Viola, Founder of Hex Publishers and Editor, Writer and Creative Director on the Unioverse anthology and comics. “The anthology will deepen the lore of the Unioverse and open it up to diverse storytelling, while the comic books provide rich art and a perfect starting point for fans just beginning their Unioverse journey.”
In addition to the anthology, Hex is leading the creation of a series of six comic books that introduce the initial five Unioverse heroes that people will be able to play in Unioverse videogames. The series is written by Hex Publishers Founder and Colorado Book Award winner Joshua Viola and Angie Hodapp, Director of Literary Development at Nelson Literary Agency, with interior art by Ben Matsuya (Cryowulf, Jupiter Jet), cover art by AJ Nazzaro (Hearthstone, Overwatch) and a variant cover by Tyler Kirkham (DC, Marvel). The first comic, titled Unioverse: Reyu, will be available digitally in Spring of 2023.
“This anthology and comic series are just the beginning for Unioverse storytelling,” said Tony Harman, Co-Founder and CEO of Random Games. “Not only will we develop more stories with established authors and artists, the Unioverse platform will help us discover and promote the next generation of talent.”
This partnership with Hex Publishers follows the recent launch of the Unioverse and Random Games, which announced last month $7.6 million in seed funding led by Resolute Ventures and Asymmetric, with participation from IGNIA, 2 Punks Capital, ID345, Polygon and notable game-developer David Jones (Lemmings, Grand Theft Auto).
To find out more about the Unioverse and stay up-to-date on the anthology and comic books, visit UNIOVERSE.com, follow @TheUnioverse on Twitter and join the Unioverse Discord server.
Complete list of Stories of the Reconvergence writers:
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Mario Acevedo • National bestseller, Colorado Book Award winner
Killing the Cobra, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, X-Rated Blood Suckers, University of Doom -
Linda D. Addison • Bram Stoker Award winner, Horror Writers Association (HWA) Lifetime Achievement Award winner
Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda, Classic Monsters Unleashed, Predator: Eyes of the Demon, The Place of Broken Things -
Kevin J. Anderson • National and international bestseller
Dune, Spine of the Dragon, Star Wars, X-Files, Zombie P.I. - Andy Baker • The 7th Portal, The Accuser, The Backstreet Project, House of the Dead
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Carina Bissett • Colorado Book Award winner
HWA Poetry Showcase, Shadow Atlas, Upon a Twice Time -
Kenneth W. Cain • Splatterpunk Award finalist
Darker Days, Embers, A Season in Hell, Tales from the Lake - Kevin Dilmore • Amazing Stories, Famous Monsters of Filmland, Rainbow Bright, Star Trek, The Village Voice
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Sean Eads • Colorado Book Award finalist, Lambda Literary Award finalist, Shirley Jackson Award finalist
Classic Monsters Unleashed, It Came from the Multiplex, Lord Byron’s Prophecy, Nightmares Unhinged, Shadow Atlas - Brent Friedman • Call of Duty, Halo 4, League of Legends, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, The Walking Dead
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Maxwell I. Gold • Rhysling Award nominee
Bleeding Rainbows and Other Broken Spectrums, Oblivion in Flux, Shadow Atlas -
Warren Hammond • Colorado Book Award winner
Denver Moon, It Came from the Multiplex, KOP, Nightmares Unhinged, Shadow Atlas, Tides of Maritinia -
Angie Hodapp • Colorado Book Award finalist
Cyber World, False Faces, It Came from the Multiplex, Shadow Atlas, Tooth & Claw -
Jamal Hodge • Vanguard Award winner
Chiral Mad 5, Penumbric Magazine, Space and Time Magazine -
Akua Lezli Hope • Elgin Award winner, Writer’s Digest Award winner
NOMBONO, Otherwheres, Them Gone -
Gabino Iglesias • Bram Stoker Award nominee, Locus Award nominee, Wonderland Book Award winner
Zero Saints, Coyote Songs -
Stephen Graham Jones • New York Times bestseller, Bram Stoker Award winner, Ray Bradbury Prize
Earthdivers, My Heart is a Chainsaw, The Only Good Indians -
Matthew Kressel • Nebula Award finalist, World Fantasy Award finalist
King of Shards, Queen of Static -
Lee Murray • Bram Stoker Award winner
Grotesque: Monster Stories, The Path of Ra, The Taine McKenna Adventures -
Wyeth Ridgway • Game Developer
Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, South Park, Terminator - Jeanne C. Stein • bestselling author of the Anna Strong Vampire Chronicles
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Joshua Viola • Denver Post bestseller, Colorado Book Award winner, Splatterpunk Award nominee
The Bane of Yoto, Blackstar, Classic Monsters Unleashed, Cyber World, Denver Moon, It Came from the Multiplex, Nightmares Unhinged, Pirates of the Caribbean, Shadow Atlas, Target: Terror -
Tim Waggoner • Bram Stoker Award winner, Shirley Jackson Award finalist
Alien, Halloween Kills, Resident Evil, Supernatural -
Dayton Ward • New York Times bestseller
24, Mars Attacks, Planet of the Apes, Star Trek -
Carter Wilson • USA Today bestseller, Colorado Book Award winner
The Comfort of Black, The Dead Girl in 2A, The Dead Husband, Mister Tender’s Girl - Jezzy Wolfe • Insidious Assassins, Monstrum Poetica, Shallow Waters, Zippered Flesh
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Jane Yolen • Nebula Award winner, World Fantasy Award winner
The Devil’s Arithmetic, Lost Girls, Owl Moon, Sister Emily’s Lightship -
Alvaro Zinos-Amaro • Hugo Award finalist, Locus Award finalist
Equimedian, Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert Silverberg, When the Blue Shift Comes
About Random Games
Founded by gaming industry veterans Tony Harman and Wyeth Ridgway, Random Games (https://random.games/) is a development studio spearheading an entirely new concept in videogames and franchise entertainment through a combination of community empowerment and blockchain technology. The company’s first franchise, The Unioverse, is a sci-fi epic that will span across video games, comic books, novels and more. At the same time, the Unioverse community will be encouraged and equipped to create their own stories, games and more with official high-quality artwork and other assets available as royalty-free downloads. To join the robust Unioverse community, visit the Unioverse Discord server.VERSE.com, follow @TheUnioverse on Twitter and join the Unioverse Discord channel.
About Hex Publishers
Hex Publishers (https://hexpublishers.com/) is an independent publishing house owned and operated by Joshua Viola, proudly specializing in genre fiction: horror, science fiction, crime, dark fantasy, comics, and any other form that awakens the imagination. Hex features numerous national and international bestselling authors, as well as Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Award winners. The press values both the author and the reader, with an emphasis on quality, diversity, and underrepresented voices.
