Atari Acquisition Megathread (Stern, Nightdive, Accolade, M Network, and now ATARIAGE!)

[Nall3k]

5 hours ago, GraffitiTavern said:

I'd say getting an inhouse dev which can do at least AA titles could be, but that depends whether they use them to their full potential. System Shock is a solid IP, although seems kind of odd in the Atari stable. Also these moves might be partly to restore enough faith in the company to spur further investment.

 

Any idea how much of potential profits would go to Atari now?

From what I've read, Atari is going to be more "hands off" with Nightdive. Rosen stated they (Nightdive) was already profitable doing what they do (bringing games like Turok and Doom 64) to modern platforms. I'm sure some projects will be Atari published, but other games that are owned by someone else (ID with Doom 64) will be handled by Nightdive and that respective company.

[Flojomojo]

They'll have to claw back all their development costs, first. System Shock remake is almost 6 years late from its original launch plans. 

 

 

[MrMaddog]

On 5/16/2023 at 1:21 AM, Nall3k said:

From what I've read, Atari is going to be more "hands off" with Nightdive. Rosen stated they (Nightdive) was already profitable doing what they do (bringing games like Turok and Doom 64) to modern platforms. I'm sure some projects will be Atari published, but other games that are owned by someone else (ID with Doom 64) will be handled by Nightdive and that respective company.

 

The only Nightdive game that's currently published by Atari is Blood: Fresh Supply, it's only a matter of porting the KEX engine over to Linux if they so desire.

 

All the other ones, including System Shock Remake, are published by other companies so that involves licesening deals...

[GraffitiTavern]

UPDATE: So far they have announced one of the more notable acquired games, Berzerk, is getting an enhanced cartridge release. Judging how the AtariAge enhanced cart was made by Mike Mika of Digital Eclipse, lists similar features, and is still up, I am guessing they are the same version. Possibly we can expect other releases of enhancements for their newly acquired properties.

https://atari.com/products/berzerk-enhanced-edition 

[+jgkspsx]

On 8/23/2023 at 11:42 PM, GraffitiTavern said:

I am guessing they are the same version.

Albert confirmed (maybe even in this topic?) that they are significantly different and that he is not involved in these releases.

[GraffitiTavern]

One more bombshell acquisition I wasn't expecting...

2023 acquisitions so far

- Stern + Berzerk

- Accolade + Bubsy

- M Network

- Nightdive + System Shock

- AtariAge itself

[Zonie]

10 hours ago, StormyWeathers said:

Well this one came in as a bit of a shock. Not in a negative way. I am pretty sure Al Yar knows whats best for us and also has to move on with the site in a better direction. Maybe its wishful thinking but i try to think positive about it...

"Al Yar" Funny!

[+jgkspsx]

Can you edit the thread title? It seems worth doing.

[Albert]

3 minutes ago, jgkspsx said:

Can you edit the thread title? It seems worth doing.

He can now.

 

 ..Al

[GraffitiTavern]

9 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

Can you edit the thread title? It seems worth doing.

 

9 hours ago, Albert said:

He can now.

 

 ..Al

Done

[+x=usr(1536)]

On 5/4/2023 at 2:32 PM, GraffitiTavern said:

EDIT: SEPTEMBER 9th 2023

5. Atari has now indirectly acquired this very thread, along with the rest of AtariAge

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-acquires-atariage

Adding Mobygames to the list might also be apropos.

[GraffitiTavern]

So we have five acquisitions this year, in addition to the acquisition of MobyGames last year and the incorporation of that little VCS Connect show with the hiring of @davpa, Atari definitely seems to be going for a strategy of hiring/partnering existing fan groups, and building out its own gaming history databases.

 

Between that and the 4 game acquisitions this year, as well as the partnership with Playmaji, it seems to be moving towards a one-stop shop for retro games, with both retro rereleases and remakes(System Shock & Recharged series). While I would have also preferred they partner with Analogue, there does as least seem to be some strategy at play.

 

Do you think they will ever  try and go after the Atari Games properties held by Warner Bros?

[+x=usr(1536)]

3 minutes ago, GraffitiTavern said:

Do you think they will ever  try and go after the Atari Games properties held by Warner Bros?

Maybe.  Warner has no real incentive to hold on to them (except for licensing), but they also have no incentive to let them go, either.  It'll all come down to what sort of offers can be made and if they're in a selling mood.

[GraffitiTavern]

5 minutes ago, x=usr(1536) said:

Adding Mobygames to the list might also be apropos.

The thread was more to focus on the string of acquisitions the past 6 months, so I won't edit the title or main post, but that is in the scope of discussion here, particularly since the AtariAge acquisition they seem to want to build out their databases of gaming history. Admittedly I was unsure on why they would buy MobyGames when they are struggling financially, do you know why?

[GraffitiTavern]

1 minute ago, x=usr(1536) said:

Maybe.  Warner has no real incentive to hold on to them (except for licensing), but they also have no incentive to let them go, either.  It'll all come down to what sort of offers can be made and if they're in a selling mood.

The retro IP acquisitions so far are fairly cheap, and Warner may ask for too much money for them. It's also a huge company, and may have specific procedure about handling its IP catalog. But I'm not sure, they have done nothing with that IP besides Gauntlet. The fact that they haven't tried to cash in on Marble Madness II with an Arcade 1UP or something shows they just aren't paying attention to their retro catalog.

 

(a small part of me hopes Atari tries and gets Glover back)

[+x=usr(1536)]

1 minute ago, GraffitiTavern said:

The thread was more to focus on the string of acquisitions the past 6 months, so I won't edit the title or main post, but that is in the scope of discussion here, particularly since the AtariAge acquisition they seem to want to build out their databases of gaming history. Admittedly I was unsure on why they would buy MobyGames when they are struggling financially, do you know why?

I can only speculate as to why, but one reason I can think of is that it would give them ownership of a massive database of games.  This, in turn, would become licensable content, or content that the company can use without needing to seek permission or pay royalties / fees to access.

8 minutes ago, GraffitiTavern said:

Between that and the 4 game acquisitions this year, as well as the partnership with Playmaji, it seems to be moving towards a one-stop shop for retro games, with both retro rereleases and remakes(System Shock & Recharged series). While I would have also preferred they partner with Analogue, there does as least seem to be some strategy at play.

(Emphasis above is mine.)

 

This seems like a logical move for Atari.  By acquiring Mobygames, AtariAge, and other community-related sites, they can directly target their grassroots audience while exposing non-Atari enthusiasts to new offerings.  Given that relations with their hardcore userbases have historically been poor, it makes sense to try to build goodwill in those corners while also opening up the reach of advertising.

 

There does seem to be actual strategy to Atari's recent acquisitions.  I'm not completely sure what it is yet, but unlike the previous management's scattergun approach, there does seem to be focus to it.  Time will tell.

[invisible kid]

Zombie Atari Katamari Damacy. I love it.

[+x=usr(1536)]

15 minutes ago, GraffitiTavern said:

The retro IP acquisitions so far are fairly cheap, and Warner may ask for too much money for them.

It's also to their benefit to sit on them.  Let's say someone comes along with a script for a Gauntlet movie.  Warner doesn't have to licence anything, and the film rights belong to them as part of contractual obligations once the film is complete.

 

Now, if an outside studio wants to make the Gauntlet movie, they'll have to pay both licensing fees and royalties to Warner (likely in perpetuity) for the rights to use that IP.  Warner is now making money from every type of release from theatrical to physical media to streaming (and probably merchandise as well) on something that cost them next to nothing to just have hanging around in the catalogue.  Same applies to someone wanting to make another sequel to the game.

19 minutes ago, GraffitiTavern said:

But I'm not sure, they have done nothing with that IP besides Gauntlet. The fact that they haven't tried to cash in on Marble Madness II with an Arcade 1UP or something shows they just aren't paying attention to their retro catalog.

Three reasons why they likely haven't done anything along the lines that you're suggesting:

1. There's no real money in it for them.  The cases being described are very niche, and the return just isn't there to justify the risk.  Speaking of risk:
2. Every time IP is licensed to a third party, there's a risk of dilution of value of that IP.  This could be through poor handling, shoddy products, or misuse of the IP.  In a sense, it's sort of like why Ford will never make another car named the 'Pinto' ever again: even 50 years after the fact, the name rightfully carries a lot of baggage.  No IP owner wants to turn their IP radioactive because that pretty much guarantees it'll only sit on the shelf, untouched, forever.
3. It's not costing them anything appreciable to not license the IP.  I've worked for both Warner and one of its subsidiaries in the past.  While that wasn't in contract negotiation, I can say that the company is already paying the salary of the contract lawyer who has to do an annual review of these properties, so the review is just an embedded cost within that salary to ensure that they retain ownership.

That's all speculation on my behalf, though.  Take it with as many grains of salt as you may feel appropriate, but I do feel that it's probably a combination of factors with those three being a part of it.

[davpa]

1 hour ago, GraffitiTavern said:

…and the incorporation of that little VCS Connect show with the hiring of @davpa…

Haha, while I appreciate the idea that I was hired for those reasons, that is hardly reality. I was originally hired to edit and fact check copy for Atari historical inaccuracies…something that I was never given opportunities to do. Literally the first day on the job, a few critical events happened: the Standard XP cart PCB reversing became known, and a few personnel changes happened. Right away I was asked if I could do other things. So that night I became the official Community Manager of the VCS Discord (which I was already doing in an unofficial way via the then Community Manager), and I started working with the VP of Hardware on assessing what was going on in those first few hours of the XP cart issue.  After that a few other things transpired that is more entertaining if some is buying appetizers in Portland at PRGE, which I will now be attending.

 

Again, I’m flattered that you think my nothing-burger of a channel was even something Atari considered. I decided to stop doing videos because I felt it was unethical to keep doing what I was doing while working for Atari. It would have put questions of doubt and suspicion in the minds of viewers to what I was saying. For me, speaking sincerely and honestly was critical when making my videos and the subjects I picked, but how can the viewers believe that when I’m working for the company I would talk about? I didn’t want to be viewed as a shill. I also didn’t want to get fired because I wouldn’t filter myself! I’m honest, not stupid.

 

The funny thing is, VCS Connect wasn’t even my channel. It still exists, but it is inactive. The channel was meant to be a multi-personality type channel focused on VCS and Atari news. It didn’t happen because the people we approached at the time wanted to focus on their own personal channel, with hope of monetizing and all that. So VCS Connect just became me…and now nothing because I left. 
 

ok, that was that was an anti-TL;DR.

[roadrunner]

Will Atari reacquire the license to make new Transformers games?
















 

Edited September 9, 2023 by roadrunner

[davpa]

1 hour ago, GraffitiTavern said:

Admittedly I was unsure on why they would buy MobyGames when they are struggling financially, do you know why?

I can tell you the main motivation: game (historical) preservation. MobyGames didn’t have the resources to further their work and was likely to shut down soon. Atari felt they could help and that a site like MobyGames should not disappear.

[davpa]

8 minutes ago, roadrunner said:

Will Atari reacquire the license to make new Transformers games?
















 

Very unlikely. This is a Billion dollar franchise, the fees just to work with this IP would be way too much for Atari at this point in time. Look at what happened with the E.T. deal back in the day. Atari/Warner practically owned the world, but losses from E.T. due to mismanagement (not bad game by HSW) cause financial consequences that contributed to Atari’s collapse. So even if Atari did have the finances to approach something like this, I doubt they would. Too much to risk.

[+jgkspsx]

On 9/9/2023 at 9:41 AM, invisible kid said:

Zombie Atari Katamari Damacy. I love it.

[Flojomojo]

On 9/9/2023 at 10:02 AM, x=usr(1536) said:

It's also to their benefit to sit on them.  Let's say someone comes along with a script for a Gauntlet movie.  Warner doesn't have to licence anything, and the film rights belong to them as part of contractual obligations once the film is complete.

I’m not a lawyer, but I think with trademarks, there’s an expectation that you should be actively using it, especially if you aim to profit from or prevent others from using it. 

 

Copyright is different, and I think it lasts a long time, but if everyone forgets about Gauntlet because it hasn’t been seen in almost 40 years, the value as a nostalgic release diminishes. 

 

I think it’s goofy that Midway games are on Arcade 1Up replicades and AntStream streaming, but haven’t been on consoles since Midway Arcade Treasures from a decade ago. 

 

I don’t particularly care who ends up with them, so long as they don’t do stupid things with them, but it would be “nice” to someday have all the Atari stuff under one roof. And if that never happens, we’ll always have emulation and FPGA. 

[+jgkspsx]

12 minutes ago, Flojomojo said:

I’m not a lawyer, but I think with trademarks, there’s an expectation that you should be actively using it, especially if you aim to profit from or prevent others from using it.

Midway is actively using it- they sell it in Arcade1ups and with weird licensed merchandise like these: https://www.toynk.com/products/midway-classic-arcade-tin-lunch-boxes-set-of-3-defender-gauntlet-joust

 

Nobody said they have to use it for anything GOOD to retain it.