Warner Bros. making web video series out of Hawken mech-shooter game

Hawken hasn’t debuted yet, but previews of the futuristic mech-shooter game have stirred up a lot of interest. So Warner Bros. has secured rights to develop a web video series based on the story of Hawken, which is set in a postapocalyptic, overindustrialized planet where humans encased in giant, robot-like suits fight for dwindling resources.

Publisher Meteor Entertainment plans to release Hawken on Dec. 12 as a web-based title. The rights for the web video, secured by DJ2 Entertainment (represented by WME and Morris Yorn), and since Hawken is a new franchise, the video series enables Warner to present the game’s backstory to potential players. Copper Media, a new division of Silver Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, and DJ2 will produce the show.

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Adhesive Games, a division of Meteor, is developing Hawken as a free-to-play downloadable web game, but its quality better mirrors triple-A development on consoles and PCs. The game drew a lot of attention thanks to a YouTube video that scored millions of hits.

More than 300,000 users are registered for the game’s closed beta test, which is scheduled for this fall. The game will be available on PCs, Macs, Facebook, tablets and others device via the Gaikai cloud-based game streaming service platform.

Warner has made web video series such as Mortal Kombat: Legacy and Aim High.

“We believe ‘Hawken’ is a cutting-edge gaming franchise that lends itself to multiple platforms, and we’re very excited to work with Copper Media and DJ2 to develop it into a top-flight digital series,” said Eva Davis, the executive vice president and general manager of Warner Premiere. “Warner Bros. Digital Distribution proved there is a way to reach a sizable and passionate audience with this type of property, as we have seen with ‘Mortal Kombat: Legacy,’ which has reached over 70 million views since its debut.”