Animated Series Culminates Three-Year Effort and Includes Creative Executives from Marvel and DC Cinematic Universe

Austin, Texas and Los Angeles – March 13, 2023 – Pixel United, a Top 5 global mobile-first publisher with 5.5 million daily players worldwide, and Plarium, a global leader in developing F2P mobile and PC games, today at South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference and Festivals announced the release of its first original limited animated series titled RAID: Call of the Arbiter. The series, based on the billion-dollar RPG strategy game RAID: Shadow Legends, will consist of 10 five-minute weekly episodes set to premiere on YouTube on May 18, 2023. The animated series elevates RAID’s core characters with deeper, more immersive storylines while delivering cinematic-quality animation.

The series teaser video, released today, can be viewed below

The game RAID: Shadow Legends has quickly become one of the fastest growing collection RPGs with over 75 million downloads across all platforms exceeding $1 billion in lifetime revenues. The turn-based fantasy game immerses players and offers over 700 collectable champions across 15 different factions. With this new series, RAID fans can look forward to learning the origins of some of their most beloved champions, uncovering surprises throughout the series that tie to in-game rewards, and several other collaborations that deliver an immersive experience connecting the game and the series.

“RAID: Shadow Legends is an incredibly valuable part of the Pixel United portfolio and our team at Plarium spearheaded this vision that has brought the game’s IP to life in a way that also opens an entirely new franchise pathway for the brand,” said Michael Lang, CEO, Pixel United. “We’re excited that this project spotlights our incredibly talented Pixel United global team in collaboration with some of the best creative minds in Hollywood, and we are looking forward to the future opportunities that lie ahead.”

The creation of RAID: Call of the Arbiter has been a global effort involving over 400 people across the Pixel United portfolio, including RAID: Shadow Legends team members located in or displaced from Ukraine. The game RAID: Shadow Legends was launched almost five years ago by Plarium Global’s Ukraine-based creative Studio and that team continues to work on the Top 20 game from Ukraine and locations around Western Europe, including at the company’s new state-of-the-art Studio in Warsaw, Poland. 

“This new limited series maximizes Plarium IP, extending the reach of one of our most popular franchises,” said Schraga Mor, CEO, Plarium. “We know our fans will appreciate experiencing the RAID universe brought to life with memorable, three-dimensional characters, and we look forward to building their storylines even further. We are also proud to dedicate this production to our Ukrainian team members, their families, and their remarkable work over the events of the last year.”

The animated series takes place in the world of Teleria, a land seemingly abandoned by its gods, torn by warring factions locked in ceaseless conflict. The central character - pulled from the game’s core lore - is an ancient guardian called the Arbiter who is seeking a path to return to the world. She must summon a team of unlikely champions to light the spark that will cast down the darkness.

Eric Rollman, CEO of Rollman Entertainment and former President of Marvel Television and Animation, will produce the series. He is responsible for bringing Marvel to TV and was one of the first key hires by Haim Saban, helping drive the success of the Power Rangers franchise. More recently, he partnered with ballerina, author, and producer Misty Copeland on an animated ballet series, and was supervising producer of Skylanders Academy, a Netflix original animated series from Activision Blizzard Studios.

Jay Oliva, Founder and CEO of the animation studio Lex + Otis, is the series’ showrunner. An animation industry veteran and former Netflix executive producer, Oliva has directed a dozen animated films for both Marvel and DC, including The Dark Knight Returns and the acclaimed Young Justice series. He was previously recruited by Zack Snyder to storyboard the DC Cinematic Universe, beginning with Man of Steel, and is currently the showrunner for multiple animated series, including the Netflix show Trese, as well as ARK: The Animated Series.

Plarium also partnered with TeamTO, one of Europe’s leading creative animation companies, whose past work includes the Emmy-nominated “Angelo Rules.” BAFTA award-winning Danish composer Jesper Kyd, known for the iconic music for blockbuster video game franchises such as Assassin’s Creed and Borderlands, created original music for the animated series. In addition, Kendall Deacon Davis of Lex + Otis was the series’ lead writer. He was also lead writer on ARK: The Animated Series featuring Russel Crowe.

“We’re thrilled to be working with such a high caliber team on this exciting new series that takes RAID: Shadow Legends to the next level for our fans,” said Nicholas Day, Vice President Creative, Plarium and Executive Producer. “We want to establish RAID as a bankable evergreen IP, with enough strength to do more, all while appealing to our core fans and capturing interest from a broader audience.” In addition to Day, Gary Rosenfeld, Head of Business Development at Pixel United is Executive Producer of the animated series.

RAID: Shadow Legends is available to download on iOS and Android mobile devices, as well as PC through the Microsoft Store or the Plarium Play platform. To learn more about Plarium, follow @PlariumGames on YouTube, @Plarium on Instagram, and /Plarium on LinkedIn.

About Pixel United

Pixel United is the free-to-play, mobile-first games business of Aristocrat Leisure Ltd (ASX: ALL).  Its portfolio comprises three operating businesses spanning multiple key game genres: Product Madness (UK), Plarium (Israel), and Big Fish Games (USA).  Pixel United has also established PxU Studios focused on developing​ disruptive new games in rapidly growing segments, exploring the latest tech trends and expanding its pipeline of content and IP over time.  As a global business, with a growing team of 3,000 people in 21 Studio locations worldwide, Pixel United leverages its recognizable game brands, best-in-class LIVE ops, in-house development, business intelligence and marketing capabilities, with strong investment in talent to fuel its performance and deliver sustainable long-term growth.  www.pixelunited.com

About Plarium
Plarium Global Ltd. is dedicated to creating the best mobile and PC experience for its community of over 435 million hardcore and casual gamers worldwide. Our diverse portfolio includes over 20 games ranging from hardcore RPGs to casual adventures, featuring acclaimed titles such as RAID: Shadow Legends, Vikings: War of Clans, Lost Island: Blast Adventure, and the Stormfall franchise. The App Store and Google Play regularly feature our games, with Facebook twice recognizing us as a top hardcore Facebook developer. Plarium employs more than 1300 specialists at its headquarters and eight offices and studios around the globe. Our games are available on iOS, Android, and PC. They are also available through Plarium Play, our optimized game launcher for PC and Mac players. Plarium is part of Pixel United, the global mobile-first games publishing business of Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX code: ALL). Visit  www.plarium.com  for more information.