Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Enter The Armageddon Game With Shredder as Leader (Exclusive)

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are entering Rat King's Armageddon Game. It's a good thing the Shredder is there to lead them. ComicBook.com can exclusively reveal the details of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game, the upcoming eight-part TMNT event series from IDW Publishing. Tom Waltz, who previously wrote 100 issues of the longest-running ever Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, returns to IDW's TMNT continuity for the event. He's teaming with Vincenzo Federici (Red Sonja) for what IDW describes as a game-changing event that has been a decade in the making. Waltz will further set up the event in the two-part storyline The Armageddon Game: Opening Moves series beginning this June.

"It's an absolute honor and privilege to return to IDW's main TMNT continuity, and to have the opportunity to do it as the creative lead on a huge multilayered event like The Armageddon Game (which has been bouncing around in my brain ever since I stepped away after issue #100) is the veritable icing on the cake," Waltz says in a statement provided to ComicBook.com. "I can't wait for fans to see what we've been cooking up. We've got a big story to tell and some amazing collaborators joining us in the telling. Let the games begin!"

According to IDW, The Armageddon Game sees the Shredder, who has been aiding the Turtles from the shadows since returning from the dead, leading Clan Hamato on a dangerous mission. They must forge new alliances if they hope to stand up against the Rat King and his frightful new trio of allies: LeatherKrang, Baxter Stockman, and Madame Null. The journey will take the Turtles to the furthest corners of New York City and other dimensions. However, their absence from Mutant Town leaves the community vulnerable to new threats. The Armageddon Game builds on Waltz's collaboration with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman during the first 100 issues of the IDW series before handing it off to Sophie Campbell in 2020.

"When I was seven, I decided that I would become a comic book artist when I grew up…and the credit for that decision goes to TMNT. I was obsessed with them and still am," Federici says. "My personal vision of TMNT is forged in the television series and films of the '80s and '90s, but I also take inspiration from those who have worked on the IDW series from the beginning, such as Mateus Santolouco or Sophie Campbell. In the tradition of those great artists, I'll be giving my very best effort for this series. Readers will be delighted!"

Senior editor Charles Beacham adds, "This story is going to be huge! There are a ton of players (and more than a few surprises), and honestly, this is just the start. When we reach the end of this saga, it will mark the beginning of a whole new era for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Whether you're a lifelong fan of TMNT or brand-new to the party, The Armageddon Game is not to be missed."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #1 will ship with three covers: one from Federici, another by Eastman, and a third retailer incentive variant by Pasquale Qualano. The issue goes on sale in August.