Dark Horse and Valve Collect DOTA 2 Web Comics into hardcover collection

By John Freeman on May 23, 2017

US publisher Dark Horse and Valve are to release a collection of comics that dive deep into the characters and history of Dota 2, the most played game on Steam.

Out in August 2017, the Dota 2: The Comic Collection assembles Valve’s Dota 2 web comics in print for the first time, ever, following up on the 2011 release of Valve Presents: The Sacrifice and Other Steam-Powered Stories.

It would appear, after some from online digging, that the comics were written by Marc Laidlaw, who worked on the Dota 2 game for several years but is now a freelance author, and artists working on the project include Jim Murray (co-creator of the graphic novel Drowntown) whose story “Are We Heroes Yet?” can be read online and is, simply, beautiful to look at.

Story by Marc Laidlaw, art by Jim Murray

Dota 2 is a free-to-play multiplayer online video game developed and released by Valve Corporation in 2013 – a competitive game of action and strategy, played both professionally and casually by millions of passionate fans worldwide. Players pick from a pool of over a hundred heroes, forming two teams of five players. Radiant heroes then battle their Dire counterparts to control a gorgeous fantasy landscape, waging campaigns of cunning, stealth, and outright warfare.

• Dota 2: The Comic Collection goes on sale 1st August 2017. Pre-order your copy on Amazon.co.uk (using this link helps support downthetubes). Visit DarkHorse.com for more information.

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.