Metzen announced in early 2005 that he was working on a graphic novel series independent of Blizzard Entertainment. The series, entitled "Soldier: 76", is set in a second American civil war in 2010, with increased domestic and global terror threats and the increase in power for the US federal government over that of local state governments serving as a background. Metzen wrote the series' script, while Brazilian artist Max Velati was responsible for the illustration and painting of the book. Soldier: 76 would later appear as a character in "Overwatch", Blizzard's online first-person shooter game, released in May 2016.