TNT Sports To Produce ‘MultiVersus NHL Face-Off’ Animated Broadcast Featuring Bugs Bunny, Batman, Shaggy, and More

The altcast will leverage NHL EDGE positional data and Hawk-Eye optical tracking while the real-time animation will be produced by Beyond Sports

TNT Sports is getting into the animated broadcast business, partnering with Warner Bros. Games and the NHL to produce the first-ever MultiVersus NHL Face-Off on Sunday, April 14 at 3:30 p.m. ET. The real-time animated broadcast of the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights matchup, which will be carried exclusively on truTV and Max’s B/R Sports Add-on, will feature Warner Bros. Discovery characters appearing in the upcoming MultiVersus videogame, including Bugs Bunny, Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, Velma and Shaggy, Steven Universe and Finn the Human. In addition, Looney Tunes character Tasmanian Devil will officiate the game and drop the puck on the afternoon’s action.

MultiVersus NHL Face-Off will merge two different tracking technologies — NHL EDGE positional data (NHL Puck and Player tracking) and Hawk-Eye Innovations optical tracking to generate realistic character and player avatar movements to best represent the movements of the NHL players on the ice. The real-time animation will be produced in association with NHL innovation partner Beyond Sports.

The animated presentation of Avalanche at Golden Knights will use the NHL’s innovative NHL EDGE tracking technology to recreate the action on the ice as it happens in real-time, featuring the characters of MultiVersus alongside avatars of the NHL’s biggest stars — including Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar of the Avalanche against Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault of the Golden Knights, among others. The ice rink for the alternate telecast will be dynamic and incorporate rotating elements based on environments from the MultiVersus game, such as the Space Jam Court, Adventure Time Tree Fort, Sky Arena and Trophy’s E.D.G.E.

The ice rink for the alternate telecast will be dynamic and incorporate rotating elements based on environments from the MultiVersus game

The altcast will feature the characters of MultiVersus – including Batman – alongside avatars of the NHL’s biggest stars

Steve Mears will call the game, with color commentary from Colby Armstrong. The duo will also share game notes and analysis during the first and second intermissions. The traditional broadcast of Avalanche at Golden Knights will be available on TNT and Max’s B/R Sports Add-On with Kenny Albert, Eddie Olczyk and Brian Boucher on the call.

Before they take the ice, a special team selection draft of the MultiVersus icons will happen during NHL on TNT’s postgame coverage of the Buffalo Sabres at Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, April 7.

Published by Warner Bros. Games and developed by Player First Games, MultiVersus is a free-to-play videogame with an ever-expanding cast of iconic heroes and personalities, set against the backdrop of reimagined universes and environments. The game is scheduled to officially launch on May 28.

Stay tuned to SVG for more in-depth coverage of the production technology and workflows behind the ‘MultiVersus NHL Face-Off’ animated broadcast.