Tag Archives: infogrames

When developing Alone in the Dark for Infogrames, Frederick Raynal said he had many ideas regarding how to scare players but found the best way to do it was to implement it into something they do all the time: walking.

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Infogrames has completed its acquisition of Atari, the US-based publisher, in a deal worth around $11 million.

The French company can now definitively unite the Atari brand, the use of which Infogrames has had the right to in Europe and other parts of the world for some time.

More on GI.

Namco’s bought 34 percent of Atari’s European and Asian sales network for €30 million.

Between June 31, 2012 to June 20, 2013, Namco will also have the option to buy the remaining 66 percent from Infogrames.

“I am delighted that this transaction strengthens our outstanding partnership with Namco Bandai, one of the industry’s greatest creators and publishers of video games, and is a significant development in Infogrames’ reinvention,” said Infogrames boss David Gardner.

“The agreement will give Infogrames a guaranteed and strengthened product portfolio and provide us additional means to invest in new product development for packaged and online markets.”

Update: SCEE just put out a statement on this, saying Bozek will be missed.

Iconic SingStar boss Paulina Bozek has quit Sony to take a job with Phil Harrison’s Infogrames.

Bozek is now development director of a new online game studio at the firm.

“I am very excited to be joining Atari at this pivotal time for both the company and the industry,” said Bozek.

“There is a huge opportunity as gaming platforms become more ubiquitous, more connected and attract more mainstream audiences. Atari has a great vision for the future and I can’t wait to start realising that vision in new products and services.”

Harrison, obviously, is quite pleased.

“This is a significant step in expanding Atari’s online game development capability,” he said.

“Paulina is one of the industry’s most respected creative leaders with an outstanding track-record of commercial and creative success and I’m delighted that she will bring her unique vision, consumer insight and proven ability for creating amazing entertainment experiences to Atari.”

Press release after he break.

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Our ears are so close to the ground they’re all mossy. Highly placed sources told VG247 today that the real reason for Phil Harrison’s departure from Sony was that work is now starting on PS4 and deja vu was setting in.

“He could see he was about to get involved in another PlayStation cycle, and obviously wanted something new,” we were told. “The same thing was happening again and he’d been through it enough times to want to move on.”

The timing of Harrison’s decision to leave Sony confused many, given that PS3 was finally starting to bloom after a troubled seedling period. The PlayStation front-man announced he was to quit in February, giving no reason for the move.

He immediately joined Infogrames as president, saying he was finding the company’s focus on casual gaming and an increased influence on internet business models “very exciting”.

Bet PS4 doesn’t have two HDMI ports either.

As expected, Infogrames has bought Atari in a transaction costing $11 million.

Atari is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Infogrames. The deal is expected to close out in the third quarter.

“Bringing Atari US and Infogrames businesses together will enable us to create a simplified global structure for our business as we seek to re-build a well-managed, cohesive and financially disciplined company,” said CEO David Gardner.

“This is a key strategic event for Infogrames that will benefit all of our shareholders. I believe that this transaction will generate significant benefits for the Group.”

Infogrames has just released a statement saying it made a bid for SCi which was rejected by the board.

“Infogrames’ proposal is financially disciplined and recognises the strengths of both companies,” said the company.

“Although the indicative offer is subject to standard conditions relating to due diligence, the receipt of irrevocable undertakings from certain SCi shareholders and the recommendation of the SCi Board, it is not subject to financing.

“Infogrames has sufficient resources to satisfy the cash element of its indicative offer and has secured commitments in relation to the potential working capital requirements of the enlarged group. Importantly, Infogrames is in a position to move expeditiously with its proposal.”

SCi confirmed a financing deal with Warner Bros. this week.

More on GI.

Infogrames boss David Gardner has told GamesIndustry.biz that the name “Infrogrames” may be ditched in favour of “Atari”.

“I’d like to consider that, I think that would be the final mark of the transformation from Infogrames to Atari,” he said. “We have a new board of directors, a new management team that’s less than a year old – so yes, it’s really continuing.

“We like to think of Infogrames, instead of being the tired, old company, we like to think of it as the best-funded, best-branded, most energetic start-up in the history of computer gaming.”

Plenty more through the link, including quotes from everyone’s favourite games warrior, Phil Harrison.

According to this, Infogrames is expecting a response from Atari regarding its buyout offer by March 11, next Tuesday. The news was listed in an SEC filing. Infogrames – 51 percent shareholder in Atari – made a $1.68 per share offer for the company’s remaining stock yesterday.

Infogrames has offered to buy the remaining Atari stock for $1.68 per share. The French firm already owns 51 percent of the ailing game-maker.

Atari signed a new distribution deal with parent Infogrames last December, to last for the next three years. We assume the mov to take complete control of the brand is all part of Gardner and Harrison’s future-forging antics.

Not a future, but the future. Following news late last night that Phil Harrison is to join Infogrames as president, CEO David Gardner has got all excited about the new Atari.

“In terms of European leaders in the games development industry, I’ve always wanted to work with Phil,” he said. “He’s going to partner with me to build the future. He’ll be the most senior guy responsible for all the content and network-centric material, all the investments that we make in games.”

In effect, then, Phil Harrison is the future. We knew there was something about him.

According to this, new boss David Gardner has said online gaming is key to Atari’s rebirth.

“The business and the industry is moving online on a global basis,” he said. “It’s moving at different speeds in different countries, but it’s pretty clear to me that the whole way that people are going to want to buy their games, play their games, interface with their games is network-centric. That’s where we need to get a lot smarter, a lot quicker, and use this famous brand.”

Gardner, formally of EA, also outlined some of his vision for Atari’s new brand of online gaming and content delivery.

“For me, the future is in creating very high quality games that are using technology with games playing on a server, not worrying about configurations and all those performance issues,” he said. “All that stuff should be seamless like a phone service – you pick up the phone and you get a dial tone and that’s it. You should be able to go to the computer and get some game time.”

Recently appointed Infogrames CEO David Gardner has admitted that the American arm of Atari has had serious problems in the past, but has now started the process of regeneration.

“It’s true it has lost plenty of money,” he said, speaking of the US Atari operation. “We don’t directly control the US because they have their own board of directors and management, and from a business point of view, it hasn’t always proven to be ideal.”

He added: “We can’t just take the decisions we want to take and we have to respect what the team says. They have to sort out that problem, we can’t sort it for them. They’ve got a new board and a chief re-structuring officer and they’re looking for a new CEO as well. It’s moving in the right direction.”

Gardner moved to Infogrames from EA, where he’d spent 25 years.

Brest press release ever. Newly appointed Infogrames CEO David Gardner, previously of EA, has now arrived in Lyon for some meetings. If that’s the best you can come up with, Atari, God help you all. Full thing after the link.

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According to this, David Gardner, formally an EA mega-boss, is now the CEO of Infogrames, Atari’s parent company. Gardner left EA last year after 25 years with the company to move to Europe and live with his family, according to that report.