Despite popular opinion, Marvel’s 1984 Secret Wars series was actually not the company’s first massive line-wide crossover event. That honor goes to Marvel Super Hero Contest of Champions, which came out a full two years earlier and was written by Mark Gruenwald with art by John Romita, Jr. and Bob Layton. That series went on to be the inspiration for Marvel: Contest of Champions, a 2014 free-to-play mobile fighting game developed and published by Kabam, which was released late last year for iOS and Android. Now the game inspired by the comic is itself inspiring another new book, as Kabam and Marvel released Marvel Contest of Champions today, a new monthly comic series inspired by Kabam’s popular mobile game.

This marks the first time Marvel has produced an on-going comic book series inspired by a video game. Marvel Contest of Champions issue number one is available at local comic shop retailers and digitally through the Marvel Digital Comics Shop. Series writer Al Ewing and Kabam artist Gabriel Frizzera will be available for autographs at Marvel’s New York Comic Con booth this coming weekend as well.

In a statement from Kabam Chief Operating Officer Kent Wakeford, he went on to say, “The Marvel Contest of Champions comic book series merges the worlds of mobile gaming and comic book publishing, presenting each as a cohesive storytelling medium that complements one another. Kabam is honored to collaborate with Marvel on the company’s first-of-its-kind project. It not only demonstrates mobile gaming’s strength as an entertainment partner, but it also exemplifies a unique way mobile games can crossover and connect to new audiences.”

Marvel’s Peter Phillips added “It was a natural creative effort to offer Marvel Contest of Champions, one of the most popular mobile games in the world, as a bold new comic series and expand that universe into one fluid entertainment experience.”

The new series will focus on the heroes that are also featured in the mobile game—including Iron Man and Gamora—as well as introduce new characters to the Marvel Universe that will debut in the mobile game first. For the comic’s debut issue, Kabam and Marvel collaborated on the development of a new character, Guillotine, a hero who wields a powerful magic sword that’s been passed down through her family since the French Revolution. New York Comic Con attendees will be among the first to see her in action as well as other fan-favorites who are making their in-game debuts in October, at the Marvel Contest of Champions demo stations at Marvel’s booth.

To download a copy of the digital version of the Contest of Champions comic, click on the following link. Are you going to read it? Let us know in the comments.

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Image Credit: Marvel