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Former Atari CEO received $4.76 million parachute
Former Atari CEO Bruno Bonnell received 3 million Euros ($4.76 million) for running the company into the ground to leave the company last year. GameDaily reports Bonnell was apparently given the package by Infogrames -- which was a majority shareholder at the time -- without Atari's management receiving a copy of the agreement until two months after the deal was done.Of course, this is a ghost from Atari's past, not the new incarnation we're slowly getting to know. We just like this story because, frankly, we're jealous. We want $4.76 million for throwing a company into financial ruin ... heck, we'll settle for a $100 bucks and a free round of drinks at the pub.
Atari chief, Bruno Bonnell, says 'au revoir'
Bruno Bonnell -- 25-year games industry veteran and Infogrames founder -- has stepped down from his plethora of positions at Atari, the company announced today. Bonnell was holding down the jobs of Chairman of the Board, Chief Creative Officer, Acting Chief Financial Officer, and a director of Atari. (To be clear, the company is still Infogrames, they've just taken to using the name Atari, the Dread Pirate Roberts of the gaming industry.) Notably absent from the list of jobs is the role of CEO, which Bonnell was forced out of in 2003 by stockholders in the face of financial troubles that, well, still aren't cleared up. But Bruno, why leave now, just when things were sort of starting to maybe get better?
More Atari trouble: Infogrames shares suspended
Newly appointed Atari CEO, David Pierce, must have been dangerously close to spilling his herbal tea this morning after reading a BBC news report regarding the suspension of Infogrames shares. If you recall, Infogrames is the French company that purchased the seemingly cursed Atari name back in 2001 -- bad news for them means bad news for Atari. Of course, Mr. Pierce's described reaction to the news is entirely fabricated. It seems ludicrous to suggest that he learned of the share woes through a website, much less that he accessed it through the sole computer which hadn't been repossessed yet. Though we jest, Atari's continuing string of financial pitfalls is no laughing matter (especially not for them). The company and its owner are clearly in strong need of some bankable intellectual property that goes beyond Dragon Ball Z and repackaged classics. Will the next generation of consoles give them a big break and the hit they need? In this industry, anything is possible. [Thanks, Jose.]
Atari appoints new CEO, hopes to avoid pitfall
David Pierce is one lucky guy. In addition to being given a fancy "CEO" title and $600,000 annual salary, the man has now been placed at the helm of Atari, currently in the process of sailing through stormy seas and various other clichés that amount to a lot failure and not an awful lot of money in the bank. He has over 20 years of management experience, including stints at Universal Pictures, MGM, Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment -- perfectly valid evidence to back up the claim that he generally knows what's he's doing. Atari stocks went up by a whole penny following the news, indicating that more than one person believes this to be a good move.The company's previous CEO and potential Marvel Comics character, Bruno Bonnell, has been shifted into the position of "Chief Creative Officer." Presumably, that entails coming up with creative ways to get the most out of the stationery and decorating the offices with cost-effective origami and pleasing fingerpaintings. Joking aside, these internal modifications may finally allow this Atari (Infogrames in disguise) to escape its current rut, reap the financial rewards and usher in an all-new video game apocalypse. Will Mr. Pierce be able to plug up that hole in the company's boat? We'll have to wait and see (and play).[Thanks cringer8!]
Alone in the Dark keeps the lights off a bit longer
Atari was dealt some pretty bad numbers the past year -- losses were at their highest in a while overall. This is partially why the next-gen iteration of Alone in the Dark has been pushed back to mid-2007, maybe into 2008. Atari does anticipate the title to be their big game for next year and let's hope they are right. Atari has even announced that the game will come to other formats not yet mentioned (and still haven't been named specifically) and that may help out. Not sure how a DS rendition of the game would do, but it's a cute idea.CEO Bruno Bonnell also talked about the likelihood of more console-specific titles and exclusives overall. He claims that "ports are going to be a little more difficult because the machines are becoming more and more specific." Ouch. That sounds like a shot at the cell processor for the PS3, but every machine is being built in very different ways (the Wii's gimmick innovative control style comes to mind). Also mentioned were game prices for the next generation. Surprisingly, Bonnell offered his thoughts that games won't cost much more other than a "massive title with crazy costs." If only he were right, but the 360 has already raised the bar by ten dollars and that will probably continue for a little while.
Atari CEO: No PS3 games before 2007
In an interview with Gamesindustry.biz, Atari CEO Bruno Bonnell confirms that there will not be any Atari PlayStation 3 games before 2007. However, Bonnell assures us that the publisher will be there for the Wii and 360 this year.Perhaps because Atari is in a bit of financial trouble, Bonnell wants to wait to see if the PS3 will actually be a platform worth developing for. He tells the site:"It's just that we're lacking information about the PS3 at this stage, because we have basically a rough release date and a high retail price point. As far as the Wii and the Xbox 360 go, we'll be there for this season; for PS3, we'll probably have to wait a little later in the year before we release some new titles." "I think that by deciding to put the PS3 at this price, Sony has chosen to really differentiate itself from the other consoles. The fact that you have Blu-ray, and the fact that it's HD compatible -- all this is driving me to think that Sony is picking up the high-end of the market, the hardcore, passionate fans. There will be a time they can reduce the price and access more people, but clearly that's a technical choice that Sony has made to be selective on the field at stage one."
