As sponsor of 6 esports teams from China, Germany, Korea, Portugal, UK and US, BMW needed a platform for all teams to appear in a campaign together. Joint shoots were unthinkable due to the geographical distance. The question also was, how could the BMW brand play a bigger role besides being a logo on the chest of our players? Our target group were international Esports fans and gaming enthusiasts ages 14-40.

We needed a piece of communication in English that would work equally good in the different markets worldwide.

The budget for the freelance author, Manga illustrator and all-in print costs was 140.000 Euros.

As there is a high influence and overlap between esports fans and manga and anime culture, we decided to make a manga the central medium for our campaign. The manga was available to read online, but we also made physical versions for the biggest fans.

“Heroes of Rivalry – the Manga. Collector’s Edition Deluxe” is a 150-page fantasy-themed storyworld adventure of the six esports teams sponsored by BMW – an original Japanese manga format drawn by a true manga artist.

An epic tale of how normally fierce rivals overcome their egos to let good prevail over evil – plus stylish BMW team cars and exclusive making-of content. Since the plot includes a secret underground tech company run by BMW, it features a powerful gadget from this company: a flashlight that lets you travel back in time! Readers can do so by shining UV-rays on early design sketches printed with UV-lacquer.

Esports and gaming have become an incubator for many trends of our time as well as the most relevant touchpoint to Gen Z. Therefore, the designated role of BMW Esports is to become an enabler for exceptional esports and gaming experiences, achieving brand loyalty at a young age.

Catering to the needs of BMW’s youngest target group is part of an overall future-ready strategy, that puts both entertainment and innovation first.

Luckily we found just the right hype to use for our storytelling purposes: Manga!

As Gen Z’s demand for this Japanese art form is increasing, gaming publishers, movie producers and streaming providers have already jumped on the bandwagon, when converting existing IPs. We therefore used the medium of manga to incorporate and introduce BMW’s newest project: Rivalworks. A strategic platform to reveal and communicate top-notch gaming hardware, eventually enter the Metaverse and help us adapt to upcoming trends.

Our manga took over six months to develop.

Not least for legal reasons, we needed to create a visually unique, fantastical esports-themed storyworld from scratch, full of inside jokes and legally acceptable references to the blockbuster game “League of Legends”. Then we transformed all 35 real-world players into recognizable illustrated characters. A process which took three feedback loops with the players. The players also “upgrade” their armor and weapons throughout the book, which is typical for video games.

Our manga is 100% authentic in dimensions, panel sizes, and the illustration style of Mangaka Acky Bright. In chapter 8 a UV-torchlight can illuminate design sketches printed with UV-lacquer, enabling “time travel”.

We decided on heavy matte paper,

special color deep blacks and only colorized covers as is also typical for manga.

As all brands that engage in the Esports and gaming community, that is so steeped in Korean and Japanese culture, it is so important for Western brands to tread these waters carefully and respectfully.

To show appreciation of the deep heritage. By staying true to the art form and collaborating with a Japanese artist, while also telling a hyper-modern tale full of sci-fi tech, luckily we were successful in that. The Manga became a calling card and physical proof that the Western brand BMW could reach the young and future-ready Esports audiences world-wide. We achieved what we set out to achieve.