Infogrames To Acquire Cryptic Studios

[nhamlett]

- Acquisition Will Provide State-of-the-Art Games and Technology Expected to Boost Atari’s Online Business Growth -

LYON, FRANCE - 9 December 2008 – Infogrames Entertainment, the parent company of Atari, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to fully acquire Cryptic Studios Inc., one of the world’s leading developers, publishers and operators of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games.

The transaction encompasses all of Cryptic’s proprietary IP, tools, technology and work-in-progress and integrates all members of the leadership team and employees into Infogrames. This acquisition is a critical step in the implementation of Atari’s strategy to become a leading online game developer and publisher.

Cryptic is currently developing three unique MMO franchises, planned for release over the next three years on PC and next-generation consoles, including Champions Online to be released in 2009 and Star Trek Online to be released in 2010. A third game currently in development will be announced in the near future.

Established in 2000 and headquartered in Los Gatos, California, USA, Cryptic has a proven track record of delivering successful MMO franchises (City of Heroes and City of Villains sold to NCSoft) generating over USD 100 million in lifetime revenues and up to 180,000 peak subscribers.

Cryptic is led by a highly experienced management team who shares Atari’s vision in online gaming and who has committed to stay with the group. Cryptic employs approximately 150 professionals, comprising leading industry creative, technical and operation experts with a proven track record in delivering on-time, on-budget titles. Cryptic’s revenues for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008 amounted to USD 17 million.

Atari will benefit from Cryptic’s powerful proprietary engine, scalable content development tools and online server architecture to deliver very high productivity-per-employee and industry-leading client/server performance and create unique, high quality MMO games on 18 to 24-month cycles. Atari will also gain a proven set of high-quality MMO game operating tools for sophisticated customer service and account management.

David Gardner, CEO of Infogrames, the parent company of Atari, said: “The acquisition of Cryptic Studios brings to Infogrames an outstanding creative organisation, with a proven track-record of success in the fast-growing MMO category. Cryptic’s success is founded on leading-edge technology and the vision of a seasoned executive management team. I am impressed with the tools and technology that Cryptic has developed to make MMOs less expensive to build. Creating vast worlds and interesting interactions can be very people intensive but with the use of Cryptic's toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century.”

“We share a common vision with Atari and their leadership team.” said John Needham, Chief Executive Officer of Cryptic Studios, “With our game development and online platform technology skills, we’re very excited about the opportunities that this unique combination with Atari creates. I am committed to helping Atari grow into a leading online game company and look forward to being part of the team.”

About Cryptic Studios
Cryptic Studios, Inc., based in Los Gatos, CA, and established in July 2000, is one of the leading independent developers of massively multiplayer online games. Cryptic is developing three major titles for the PC and current generation consoles, including Star Trek Online, Champions Online and an unannounced project. For more information on Cryptic Studios, please visit http://crypticstudios.com/.

About Infogrames Entertainment and Atari
The Infogrames group, including the Atari brand, is a global producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment software for all market segments and all interactive game platforms including consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony Computer Entertainment, advanced smartphones, Personal Computers, web and online. Its games are sold in more than 60 countries through an international distribution network and direct to consumers via http://www.atari.com/.

Atari’s extensive catalogue of popular games is based on original franchises (Alone in the Dark, Test Drive, V-Rally, My Horse & Me, Backyard Sports franchise, Total Annihilation, Outcast etc.), publishing properties (The Witcher, Legendary, Race Pro etc.), international licenses (Dragon Ball Z, Dungeons & Dragons, Jamie Oliver etc.) and classic games covering the entire history of the video game industry (Pong, Missile Command, Asteroids etc).

© 2008 Atari Europe SASU. All rights reserved.

Champions, Champions Online, and Cryptic Studios are trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of CBS Studios Inc and used with permission.

[JadeEngima]

And you, ignoring for the moment your title, are whom?

Inquiring minds want to know! :D

[Lizzio]

2010?.. i though fall 2009 come on this isnt fair :(
i am not sure i can wait that long i hope you guys come up with the beta before 2010
otherwhise i will click the self dustruction button

[Hagon]

Welcome Awen, whoever you are ;) , and good luck for the future Atari!

[PinkSkin]

Always people watching from the shadows.....and when they finally decide to come out and speak you get dumped on with news like this.....I suppose next we will be told that Perpetual has regained the helm. What a fickle world we live in.

[KO_Gilligan]

Thanks Awen...

Why do we now see a 2010 release planned? Do we have a target date yet?

[noonian]

PHEW...I was scared there for a moment...I thought SOE was lurking...:mad:

as long as ATARI doesn't mess with Cryptic's vision for the game...then were all good...:)

[Haegemon]

No doubt are great news for Cryptic Studios. Time will say if are good news for STO. Afterall Atari is a "big bro" in the computing industry like Microsoft is in the software industry, and commanding people in these industries only know about numbers and profit.

[Dext]

now I think it is time to worry, last time something happen like this with STO it was dumped.

Now I am not saying that it may not all work out but the games past was not good so here is hoping it will work out

[Jonathan]

And you, ignoring for the moment your title, are whom?

Inquiring minds want to know! :D

Maybe - http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,46258/
Or Awen The ex-community manager from Jumpgate Evolution... would be my guesses.

[babykittents]

BAD Feeling about this.. *Crosses Fingers* I hope not, but Infogames REALLY Never creates anything, it "Obtains" the Tech (HINT: Sound Familar) then stamps thier name on it. SOE Is WAY Worse, but This is not going to be pretty.. this is what we call a hostal take-over. Just when they were going to soon open Beta's on CO?? Interesting Timeing..

[DuaricAeryenmists]

When there is an economic downturn, I am sure there is a Rule of Aquisition to explain why something is being deliberately delayed. lol

[qoreQ]

At least its 2010. On wikipedia, they send within 3 years. Which would have made like 2011 or 2012. and we all know what happens 2012.

[KL0k]

i hope this is the right decision.
dont get me wrong, i like atari and infogrames, cause i grew up with their titles (amiga :D *nostalgic*), but the latest experience with neverwinter nights 2 was horrible enough, that im sitting here now, with crossed fingers, thinkin "it just can get better"..

[Jenkl]

interesting...?

[WarpVis]

They have just taken over and they already pushed STO's release from 2009 to 2010.

I just hope they leave alone what works.

[Shatterhand]

I know I'm going to seem very petty complaining about this, but why does this mean a 2010 release for Star Trek Online? Q4 of 2009 made perfect sense to me; considering what we're being told about and shown so far, I was under the impression that Cryptic was making progress. The suggestion of a 2010 release gives me two suspicions: 1. they're nowhere near done and what we've seen so far was pushed through just to entice us, and/or 2. they're putting STO on the back burner in favor of a different project.

Don't get me wrong; I'll still wait for it. I don't doubt that it'll be worth the wait. But the possibility of another year being added to that wait doesn't sit well at all with me.

[Vernian]

I don't know whether to be happy or sad :/

[minago]

hope razor didn't get laid off

[babykittents]

They are going to tell us that they aren't going to change anything, WHY, because we don't know EXSACTLY What is really set up yet, so they can change it all.. Why the extra year? So they can go over it with a fine tooth comb, Just like from spring 2009 for CO, it going to be WINTER 2009 or Summer 2010,

[Jonathan]

Maybe - http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,46258/
Or Awen The ex-community manager from Jumpgate Evolution... would be my guesses.

Hey I was right. http://community.codemasters.com/forum/showthread.php?t=320489

[KO_Gilligan]

hope razor didn't get laid off

^^^ that's a thinly veiled moderator yes man response if I've ever seen one.

[Rgoodfel]

Well time will tell if this ends up being good for us. In the short ther I hope it is good for Cryptic. Good luck guys at Cryptic and welcome to the forum Awen.

[njdss4]

Ok what's the deal with this 2010 release date? The GI issue said Fall 2009. Has it been pushed back already? Keep us in the loop with this kinda stuff, or don't put out release dates you can't keep.

[babykittents]

From what I have seen in my real life job, New company takes over, and the old bosses/managment get canned..

[callsign11b]

I think we are at the cross roads of this game ever seeing the light of day.
new money is fine a 2010 date instead of 2009 maybe ok if its to get the project right.
but we are looking at bean counters now.
cyrptic may still have creativity rights to st online but they no long have control of there bridge.
means if the star trek movie tanks.
cyrptic next project just does so so on the market. you will see the bean counters pull the plug on it or they'll water it down to get it realeased as fast as possible to try to get there money out of it.
atari was big in the 80's arcade games, alright in the early 90's amiga computers.
but they been almost bankruped since then.
as well your looking at a europian company who probly doesn't get the whole star trek thing compaired to north america.
its all about the $$$
God I hope I'm wrong about this!!!!:mad:

[minago]

^^^ that's a thinly veiled moderator yes man response if I've ever seen one.

huh?

nah i cant stand PR junk

but i like razor he's cool ...he doesn't come off as fake and will set you straight on things if ya ask ...i remember a certain thread with a marine (http://forums.startrekonline.com/showpost.php?p=244490&postcount=70)"comes to mind"

versus different hugging mod on a certain forum

[CaptainBaumer]

From what I have seen in my real life job, New company takes over, and the old bosses/managment get canned..

I sure hope not :( Thus far we (as a community) have been really happy with Cryptic's ideas and concepts... I really want to see this game happen.

[Keldaria]

And you, ignoring for the moment your title, are whom?

Inquiring minds want to know! :D

well Razor is the "Community Relations Representative"
And Awen's Title is "Online Community Lead"

I know you siad ignoring the titles, but I'm assuming that Awen's just an expansion employee (not replacemetn) with the purpose of more directly interacting with the online community rather then razor which seems to be more of a moderator / organizer for the online community.

So possibly we might be likely to see more direct responces and questions in the online community from awen? Or atleast I hope so.. I'd hate to think they replaced Razor.

One things for sure, Awen is a completely new account seeing as it was created dec 08.. likely a day or so ago.. if not today

[babykittents]

I think we are at the cross roads of this game ever seeing the light of day.
new money is fine a 2010 date instead of 2009 maybe ok if its to get the project right.
but we are looking at bean counters now.
cyrptic may still have creativity rights to st online but they no long have control of there bridge.
means if the star trek movie tanks.
cyrptic next project just does so so on the market. you will see the bean counters pull the plug on it or they'll water it down to get it realeased as fast as possible to try to get there money out of it.
atari was big in the 80's arcade games, alright in the early 90's amiga computers.
but they been almost bankruped since then.
as well your looking at a europian company who probly doesn't get the whole star trek thing compaired to north america.
its all about the $$$
God I hope I'm wrong about this!!!!:mad:

I agree, Cryptic was Mainly about GOOD Product, care and it's players. Infogames/Atari.. There IS A reason they almost went belly up, THEY do have a tendancy to "Buy up and Wash out" (A term we use in the hotel industry that means, When a "Forign Banker" (IE: a patel) Buys a hotel, it's great, Money is still coming in, then somehow, Bills aren't being paid, they let it fall apart and sell it under a US TAX failure clause, and make 2x what it is worth) I hope I AM wrong too..
I REally wanted to see this game happen, and play till i am very old...
*please don't be real*

(no offence to anyone, it IS A statistical fact) *hugs to all*

[nhamlett]

Hi there! I hadn't planned to introduce myself like this, but when in Rome... I'm Nicole or Awen whichever you choose to use. I am the lead community representative for Star Trek Online. (Just started last week so unfortunately I haven't had a lot of time to get to know all of you yet.) I'd like to answer some of the questions that you may have right now about this announcement.

The first thing that you should know is that it will be business as usual for Cryptic Studios. We still haven't announced a release date for STO and most likely will not do so for awhile. We like to keep the mystery building.

Basically, this acquisition allows Cryptic to really focus on making these games even better. Our goals are so closely aligned with those of Atari's new direction, that it accelerates our plans to independantly develop and operate really great games.

Overall, you probably won't see alot of changes, but I want to assure you that we're moving on the same track that we were yesterday and things are good.

FYI - Razor has a cold, otherwise you'd see him posting in here today as well. :)

[babykittents]

Greeting AWEN (nice name)
Thank you for coming on and letting us know. We are a easly frightened creature, us MMO'rs. Since Infogames/Atari hasn't created anything themselfs, REALLY, What.. With intune with the development, would they beable to offer that Cryptic's GREAT work has been so far? :)
Thanks..
And WELCOME AGAIN! *HUG*S

(Am I being to.. Foward?.. Sorry If I am sounding EVIL.. :) )

[Redshirt_40067]

Well this is interesting news. Glad I live in a country that Atari actually distributes in. I feel for our friends in Australia or NZ, where Atari had had a horrible track record for distribution of games such as LOTRO.

[martinsky]

Hmm... Sounnds good all in all.

Only bad thing is the 2010 release. How could you not release this at the same time as the movie? :P

Extra sales ftw.

[Jonathan]

Well this is interesting news. Glad I live in a country that Atari actually distributes in. I feel for our friends in Australia or NZ, where Atari had had a horrible track record for distribution of games such as LOTRO.

I don't think Atari published LOTRO. Turbine and Atari worked on D&D online.

[THORN74]

dont get too worked up yet about the pushback. our original sources said fall 2009 (think oct, nov) and 2010 could be jan or feb (then again it could be dec too). lets not panic quite yet

[Dominion1971]

Welcome aboard Nicole !! Glad to have a fresh face on board.. Personally, I rather enjoy seeing "Female involvement in all aspects of this game, as we all know girls pay a lot more attention to detail about stuff and can really polish things to make it even better !!!

That being said, I am happy to see you here, as this can only mean good things for this community, and shows that more people are being brought "on board" to assist with making this game better and hopefully, it can be brought to light a lot sooner...

Anyways... Welcome aboard again, I'm very happy that your here! :D ;)

[minago]

FYI - Razor has a cold, otherwise you'd see him posting in here today as well. :)

coolbeans :D

get well soon razor

[willriker09]

And I'll tell you why:

1. Fall 2009 release has already been pushed back to 2010...maybe?

2. For those who went through the hell that was Perpetual studios, does this sound familiar? It should, because the same thing happened before Perpetual came crumbling down into a pile of broken promises, legal issues, and bankruptcy. I just want my STO, is that so much to ask?

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Actually, Atari nearly went belly up because it was bought by Ted Turner/Time Warner who had a fundamentally wrong view on the business model. They expected the 80's boom to continue forever, and when new invention such as the Japanese arcade invasion, and home consoles came around, they didn't know how to deal with it.
They also fired the creative force behind the company due to boardroom politics and replaced him with a man who used to run a textile business because obviously, he knew all about 'those arty types' like programmers (you just couldn't make this up). We must make the distinction between Infogrames and Atari though, I was under the impression from the story that Infogrames have bought in to the company. They just happen to own Atari as well.

Personally, I would say that this is nothing news as far as the STO franchise is concerned. Infogrames aren't going to pull the plug on a game which could have the potential to print money, whether or not the film bombs is irrelevant.

It IS good news that the release date has been pushed back though. This proves that Infogrames haven't walked in and demanded release of STO as soon as possible, as has happened with many games. Don't forget, games cost millions to develop and don't make a penny back until they are released. Cryptic have just received an influx of money to cover their outgoings for another couple of years worth of development. This says to me that the company is secured and there is no huge rush, they want to get the game perfect, which is music to my ears.

Well done Cryptic, hope you all got nice bonuses for stock or whatever. An 18 month turn around on MMOs is crazy, without the additional pressure of catering for an audience as insane as the Trek one. :)

As an aside:
This is BIG news for the gaming industry in general. Infogrames only recently finished buying the whole of Atari, and as soon as it all went through, they declared war on the online gaming sector. They did say they plan to conquer it through acquisition (as always), but I didn't see Cryptic on their particular radar. Stupid really, as the fit is perfect. This gives Infogrames proven quantity and quality in the MMO sector, and provide Cryptic with a bigger investment and distribution base.
I happen to disagree with the Infogrames business model, it smacks of the dot-com bubble's 'Get Big Quick' scheme that left everybody apart from Amazon dead. I do think it has been proven that they aren't exactly in the most financially stable position (they fired a large portion of Atari's staff last year and were very close to bankrupt the year before), and this is their roll of the dice. Hit the pay-to-play market successfully and the rest will fall in to place. They should have never bought GT Interactive, and they made some fundamental errors in selling off intellectual properties below market value, just to keep the bailiffs from the doors.
That said, the last year has looked quite rosy for them (kind of), they are still operating at a loss of over $60 million a year but their sales have started to get on the increase now that Alone in the Dark has been released.
My own view is that they have decided that Cryptic will be their online game money spinner, which is only a good thing for gamers. This means keep gamers playing, more content, better gameplay, etc. Works for everyone really, I just hope that Infogrames don't mess up their finances bad enough that they jump the gun on STO and we end up with a below par version.

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Oh, and hi Awen. My missus is also called Nicole :)

[Manx]

Hi there! I hadn't planned to introduce myself like this, but when in Rome... I'm Nicole or Awen whichever you choose to use. I am the lead community representative for Star Trek Online. (Just started last week so unfortunately I haven't had a lot of time to get to know all of you yet.) I'd like to answer some of the questions that you may have right now about this announcement.

The first thing that you should know is that it will be business as usual for Cryptic Studios. We still haven't announced a release date for STO and most likely will not do so for awhile. We like to keep the mystery building.

Basically, this acquisition allows Cryptic to really focus on making these games even better. Our goals are so closely aligned with those of Atari's new direction, that it accelerates our plans to independantly develop and operate really great games.

Overall, you probably won't see alot of changes, but I want to assure you that we're moving on the same track that we were yesterday and things are good.

FYI - Razor has a cold, otherwise you'd see him posting in here today as well. :)

Thank you for that Awen. Welcome to the community :)

[chaotix987]

2010!?!?!?

Curse You Game Informer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[wonka2112]

Was really getting stoked waiting for this game. Reading through threads, etc. Now 2010? Oy vey! Well, back to EVE for a while I spoze. Welcome Nicole. I hope you don't break my heart with more "good news" in the immidiate future :(

[MikeJ]

Welcome to STO ( Legacy ) :) ...........Bait and Hook, thats the name of the game. Just do what I do and tack 3 years on to any release date you may have heard, that way your surprised when it comes out.
They should be required to only start a Forum if they are within one year of release, that way when they start, stop, change owners, restart (rinse and repeat) 4 years before the game comes out we will never know :D..... Just when you think its safe to make an account on the Forums WAMMMMOOOO right between the eyes........... Best of luck with the change over Cryptic, I hope it benefits you and your work. See ya in 2012 :rolleyes:

[nhamlett]

I see a recurring theme here. :) The game has not been pushed back. We are still aiming for a Fall 2009 release. I hope that this quiets your fears.

[Angelphoenix12]

I see a recurring theme here. :) The game has not been pushed back. We are still aiming for a Fall 2009 release. I hope that this quiets your fears.

Thats good news for me. i know i was starting to worry. :D

[Asylum_Swordsman]

I don't understand you guys sometimes. We have news of a multimillion dollar deal here, a new staff member on board, a potential saving grace for Infogrames and the only thing you guys notice is an offhand comment about 2010?

To all those worried about the release date:

They could release STO now, but unfortunately it would look like this:

http://img393.imageshack.us/img393/4312/stojj7.th.jpg

Your choice.

[ToadMonkey]

Gameinformer is the new front page jinx. Sport Illustrated can take a back seat.

[Sorbek]

Good to know Awen and glad Cryptic can still keep working on STO

[Asylum_Swordsman]

I see a recurring theme here. :) The game has not been pushed back. We are still aiming for a Fall 2009 release. I hope that this quiets your fears.

Very disappointing to see its not going to come out til 2010, guess its time to find another game to play for a while.

Read harder, Ensign!

[Sorbek]

Read harder, Ensign!

Lol yeah I edited it after I finally read Awen's post

[E6ajc]

I just hope the game is fun. Yeah, it would be awesome if the game came out in less than a year, but the bottom line is that I (and I think we all) just want a fun Star Trek MMO. If a polished game requires a few extra months to produce, that just gives me a little bit more time to play Bridge Commander or Elite Force.

[RetroX]

Fall 2009 is very close to 2010, and if it improves the game then a push back is ok with me. I dont want to see STO go like MxO full of promise but could done with an extra two months of beta to iron out everything.

But if their pushing for fall 2009 surely a better in the new year sometime?

[Yavin_Prime]

Honestly I know this isn't bad news but I'm getting tired of news that dosn't have any direct link to STO (as in gamplay info and such)... *Sigh*

[Traynor94]

I agree with the couple who haven't cried that the sky is falling. Even IF it were to be delayed a few extra months, I'd rather they take their time with this game and get it right. I've played a couple MMO's that weren't really polished when they shipped, and they ended up bombing... that's never fun.

This game has potential. If it had to be delayed all the way to 2011, I'd still be in line to buy it the day it hit the shelves... and I have a funny feeling most of the people who take the time to come to this site and forum would too.

I understand that we all want our fix, but hey, it'll get here, and until it does we can play other... less interesting... space based MMO's. :eek:

[Sherp]

Thanks for posting, Awen. The press release really underlines what a good deal this is for Infogrames/Atari, which is not really the perspective we're interested in. :) It's great to have someone in-the-know step in and let us know what's going on. Any more information you can provide about why this is a good deal for Cryptic will be appreciated.

I'm still concerned that Infogrames/Atari will pressure Cryptic into decisions that are not the best for the game, but that sort of fear can only be allayed through sound management over the long term. We'll hope that Atari takes a relatively hands-off approach when dealing with a proven success like Cryptic.

By the way, what is the correct appellation by which to refer to the new parent company? Do the folks who hand down the orders to Cryptic have "Atari" on their business cards, or is Infogrames in charge? Calling them "Infogrames/Atari" is already getting old. :p

[Ensign.Ricky]

Thanks for posting, Awen. The press release really underlines what a good deal this is for Infogrames/Atari, which is not really the perspective we're interested in. :) It's great to have someone in-the-know step in and let us know what's going on. Any more information you can provide about why this is a good deal for Cryptic will be appreciated.


Double that. I was waiting to see the part where is said "Cryptic benifts from this by..." but I never found it.

[CaptainHoliday]

People read and realize that Cryptic has denied a 2010 pushback and reconfirmed a fall 2009 target date for release.

That's good news to me.

[Blackfire2]

This is nothing but bad news. Cryptic has been sold, now it's time to stick our dirty little hands in and screw up what is already working fine. Get ready for a lot of changes we wont like folks, this ride is going to suck.
The only reason there would be a delay so suddenly to STO after this aquisition, would be to screw with it.
:mad::mad::mad::mad:

[Blackfire2]

People read and realize that Cryptic has denied a 2010 pushback and reconfirmed a fall 2009 target date for release.

That's good news to me.

Good I hope your right.

[ToadMonkey]

Just going to wait for the dust to settle.

[NCC74656]

Well as long as the game is finished and worth the time put in..

[welshboi82]

I would rather wait until 2010 and get a polished well playable game than get a game in 2009 that is mediocre at best.

[wonka2112]

I would rather wait until 2010 and get a polished well playable gae than get a game in 2009 that is mediocre at best.

That's what patches are for. lol

[Kelesh]

.

Don't get me wrong; I'll still wait for it. I don't doubt that it'll be worth the wait. But the possibility of another year being added to that wait doesn't sit well at all with me.


ditto , hope for the bes

[welshboi82]

That's what patches are for. lol

Yeah, I know, but there's nothing worse than having to patch every week just to get new content. Especially if you live in the boonies and have a bad connection.

[Kahn773]

I want to believe Atari and Awen and I do hope that we continue down the road we are on. I really hope we aren't going to get dumped.:eek:

[Tuta]

for Roller Coaster Tycoon 4 (http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=342)?

;)

[ElijahMrE]

I've had terrible experiences with these "acquisitions" When I was involved with MxO, Monolith gave everything up to some half-@ssed WB-Entertainment... then they gave it up to SOE... which, ultimately, destroyed the game.

I'm a little concerned...

[indelible]

I think people need to take a step back here and remember just who they are talking about.

1 - Cryptic isn't the top-of-the-line MMO developer it claims to be. Yes, Mr Emmert and co have been pioneering things here and there but I can think of a few more developers that would appear higher up my list than Cryptic Studios for the quality of their games. City of X wasn't a good franchise, critically or commercially.

2 - Atari are one of the premier game developers and publishers. These guys have released as many classic RPGs as BioWare and have seen to the development of so many classic titles, it is unbelievable. Infrogames/Atari are GOOD NEWS for Cryptic. These guys are also taking on Eve Online.

This can mean only good things for Cryptic as far as I can see.

[amb]

I just say Master of Orion III

Better dont touch STO at all and leave it to Cryptic until it's released.

[Fosnez]

Oh this is going to end well... I have a bad feeling this will result in a cancellation..

[SelorKiith]

I don't know if I should be happy that Cryptic get's more Money and Manpower... or if I should be sad, that now a Non-related Company is ruling all the thing... maybe ruining it or worse, those aquisitions doesn't get me feeling better there are Bad Memories and experiences about it...
Let us hope that Atari is smart enough to just pump in the Money and not trying to stick theire grumpy, muddy fingers into it.

[nhamlett]

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.

As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.

[jagerbolt]

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.

As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.

I was worried at first about design changes but I will take your word for it. Last thing this game needs is another major overhaul, especially since things have been going smoothly since the announcement of Cryptic taking over.

As for delays, if it means we get a better game then I am fine with that. I'd rather they took the Blizzard stance as opposed to the SOE stance.

[Sherp]

This just in from Massively.com: Jack Emmert, Cryptic's Chief Creative Officer, answers questions about the buyout.

http://www.massively.com/2008/12/09/jack-emmert-weighs-in-on-the-atari-buyout-announcement/

He seems very cheerful about the deal, saying Cryptic's CEO "hit it off" with the Atari guys, and confirms that none of Cryptic's release schedules have changed.

[Fvillha]

Jolulan Tru Awen,

Thanks for the clarification as to where Razor is ("ok Tal Shiar keep tickling em until he talks").

Please provide an update on the release date for the final and beta, ASAP, or Razor doesn't get any chicken soup, and no more Ale shipments into Cryptic.

Thanks

This message has been approved by the Department of Misdirection, a Tal Shiar Affiliate, not associated with Infogrames.

Kidding aside hope Razor recovers soon. :rolleyes:

[Quin_Draco]

My initial response was a sinking feeling but I have played many great Atari games over the years. But waiting until 2010 is going to be wretched.

[miqrogroove]

Awen, releasing "Fall 2009" means less than 9 months from now. How is that even realistic? There's going to be 6+ months of testing followed by manufacturing, and these obviously haven't begun. There has been no real news about this game in between the trailer and today's takeover announcement. And given this game's history, many of us know to expect the worst.

So honestly, what is going on in there?

[Asylum_Swordsman]

I don't understand where Atari fit in to this. The headline says Cryptic were bought out by Infogrames, the interview in the piece talks of an Atari buyout. I know they are one and the same, but will STO fly under the Atari banner?

As I have posted before, this seems to be Infogrames way of getting in to the MMO market. The doomsayers need to think again about this. Here we have one of the worlds biggest publishers, who have been quoted as saying that they want to 'take over' the MMO business, joining with a development team who are known for turning out MMO games relatively (read: crazily) quickly. Yes, Infogrames are in a financial mess at the moment, but they do have enormous resources to fall back on.

I also would class City of X as commercial successes, I would be interested to see what you believe is a success if these are not.

[Thraken]

Business wise - buyouts can be a very important thing and so this is probably good for Cryptic.
We should only worry if bad news such as the direction of STO throwing itself hard to starboard due to pressure from above and their new content posts are followed up with many unhappy community members.

And just cos I am in random mood and it seems apt.

ALL HANDS BRACE FOR BUYOUT!!!! :eek:

[jonleach]

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.

As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.

First of all Welcome aboard, love the name. Nothing like jumping into the fire first day on the job :) . Thank you also for giving us updates and Clarifications on what is happening. I think the merger or buy can be a good thing as this will put the $$$ needed to put out a great MMO's.

[RookActual]

I'd taken a light hiatus from posting in the forums, and upon my return I see a lot of great updates. I have to say this one scares me. As a past envoy for several gaming companies(tabletop), it's been my experience that you can not predict what will happen in a buyout. One company benefits where another becomes the redheaded stepchild. Usually, though, it's when the parent company has little in common with it's subsidiary in either product or style that negative results are yielded. Wizards of the Coast, for example, has become a very important tool for Hasbro, whereas WizKids just announced Topps ordered their operations ceased.

It's business, but I think Star Trek Online is safe, and may have even been improved by this. I'm wary, but perhaps a little bit more oversight may just result in a timely release of a quality product. I have more faith in the release date now, as opposed to information that was published elsewhere and confirmed here. It was published here and therefore automatically confirmed. Besides, if the release date didn't get pushed back at least once I'd have to wonder if this were a video game. I might even be suspicious of it. :p

So, I'll be optimistic about this, and be glad that it seems more and more information is being steadily released as time passes on.

Awen, have fun dealing with us fanatics and welcome. You've just chosen to lead the most demanding and particular fan community known to man. Fortunately, some of them are Romulans and Klingons.

[Dunn]

Well I guess it's to late to say red alert and i guess we are all going down with the ship. damn sell outs! this game has already been sold and scrapped once and here we are 9 months from a release and we get a sell out. ****!

[RookActual]

Well I guess it's to late to say red alert and i guess we are all going down with the ship. damn sell outs! this game has already been sold and scrapped once and here we are 9 months from a release and we get a sell out. ****!

I say stow your pitchfork and torch, wayward villager.

[thefreshjedi]

Well I guess it's to late to say red alert and i guess we are all going down with the ship. damn sell outs! this game has already been sold and scrapped once and here we are 9 months from a release and we get a sell out. ****!

Release date estimate: 2409


-Avery

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Well I guess it's to late to say red alert and i guess we are all going down with the ship. damn sell outs! this game has already been sold and scrapped once and here we are 9 months from a release and we get a sell out. ****!

HOW DARE THEY SELL THEIR BUSINESS TO A BIGGER COMPANY, THUS SAFEGUARDING THE FUTURE FOR THEIR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR BUSINESS BRAND. I DEMAND THEY APOLOGISE!

Seriously, do you read posts before you click submit? They have made a good decision here for STO and some levity should be brought to the situation.

[minago]

HOW DARE THEY SELL THEIR BUSINESS TO A BIGGER COMPANY, THUS SAFEGUARDING THE FUTURE FOR THEIR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR BUSINESS BRAND. I DEMAND THEY APOLOGISE!
.

yeah cause ya know there just gonna keep the 150 people working there after its finished...

[Dark_MatterTRON]

Well greetings Awen. On the Champions Online forum, we are supposed to ask questions regarding this transition on the announcement thread, so here is my question:

Is this going to change anything regarding this MMO? I want to make certain that, by 2010, I am playing Star Trek Online: the game that Cryptic Studios made, not Atari.

[LtHavok412]

Welcome Awen (Nicole)

I am glad to hear about the release date not being pushed back, but either way I would for this game. It should be interesting to see how Cryptic uses its new found capital with Atari. I look forward to hearing more information. I'm excitied to see how the game plays out. As for Razor tell him to get back to work (hope he feels better)

[minago]

Is this going to change anything regarding this MMO? I want to make certain that, by 2010, I am playing Star Trek Online: the game that Cryptic Studios made, not Atari.

getting a book published ...ya may have to go threw many sources to get it published the way it was intended
by the writer

if ya sale the rights to a book ...hmm yeah...bottum dollar is the only factor...writers intentions go out the door ...that goes for screenplays too


edit: oh coh did a excellent job keeping the game up to date when a certain company took over the rights <---sarcasm

[bkm250]

Overall, you probably won't see alot of changes, but I want to assure you that we're moving on the same track that we were yesterday and things are good.

:confused:


I hope they're either good changes or none at all...sorry but that line above stuck out to me.

[Kinneas]

Hello, Infogrames.

Hello Mr. Bonnell, Mr. Sapet.

Hello, Awen.

Welcome to the Star Trek gaming community. Many here have been following STO for a decade so it is understandable folks are doing a bit of freaking out when things like this happen.
---

Money & resources for Cryptic to make STO is totally a great thing for Cryptic, but might we ask you expand of some of the 'bigger' benefits this can bring to STO or what the new 'resources' are?


Is this going to allow STO to go world-wide easier?
Does it allow combining 'state of the art' technologies? How?
Does this mean bigger things for STO like a TV Show/MMO tie-In?
How does CBS feel? Are you working with CBS/Abrams?
Will you be working with NASA's partnership and licensing program to deliver space and science content for STO?


Anything to help us see what Infogrames 'big picture' for STO is?

If there is one thing we like (especially after a decade of brainstorming and waiting)...it is inspiration.

Might we ask you to try to inspire us?
---
Or Cryptic/Jack/Craig:

What does this mean to you? How does this inspire you?

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Hello, Infogrames.

Hello Mr. Bonnell, Mr. Sapet.

Hello, Awen.

Welcome to the Star Trek gaming community. Many here have been following STO for a decade so it is understandable folks are doing a bit of freaking out when things like this happen.
---

Money & resources for Cryptic to make STO is totally a great thing for Cryptic, but might we ask you expand of some of the 'bigger' benefits this can bring to STO or what the new 'resources' are?


Is this going to allow STO to go world-wide easier?
Does it allow combining 'state of the art' technologies? How?
Does this mean bigger things for STO like a TV Show/MMO tie-In?
How does CBS feel? Are you working with CBS/Abrams?
Will you be working with NASA's partnership and licensing program to deliver space and science content for STO?


Anything to help us see what Infogrames 'big picture' for STO is?

If there is one thing we like (especially after a decade of brainstorming and waiting)...it is inspiration.

Might we ask you to try to inspire us?
---
Or Cryptic/Jack/Craig:

What does this mean to you? How does this inspire you?

Excellent post. This is the one that needs answering, any chance of it happening Awen?

[Pajarkez]

Excellent post. This is the one that needs answering, any chance of it happening Awen?

I second that!

[onesoul1982]

At least its 2010. On wikipedia, they send within 3 years. Which would have made like 2011 or 2012. and we all know what happens 2012.

same thing that happend in 2000?


nothing

[Fvillha]

Hello, Infogrames.

Hello Mr. Bonnell, Mr. Sapet.

Hello, Awen.

Welcome to the Star Trek gaming community. Many here have been following STO for a decade so it is understandable folks are doing a bit of freaking out when things like this happen.
---

Money & resources for Cryptic to make STO is totally a great thing for Cryptic, but might we ask you expand of some of the 'bigger' benefits this can bring to STO or what the new 'resources' are?


Is this going to allow STO to go world-wide easier?
Does it allow combining 'state of the art' technologies? How?
Does this mean bigger things for STO like a TV Show/MMO tie-In?
How does CBS feel? Are you working with CBS/Abrams?
Will you be working with NASA's partnership and licensing program to deliver space and science content for STO?


Anything to help us see what Infogrames 'big picture' for STO is?

If there is one thing we like (especially after a decade of brainstorming and waiting)...it is inspiration.

Might we ask you to try to inspire us?
---
Or Cryptic/Jack/Craig:

What does this mean to you? How does this inspire you?

WOW, i am impressed, the Federation may have some Intel worth investigating.
Good thoughts to consider indeed. :cool:

[Ricosuave]

I'm happy that is not Funcom taking over...

[JadeEngima]

Found her on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/people/Nicole-Hamlett/578684050)and LinkedIn. She seems to have a decent CV, but it would've been nice had she made an introduction before locking a thread as her first action.

At any rate, welcome, Awen!

[jdunbar9]

Aw man I have been gearing up for 2009, with the movie and the game both being released in the same year I have been on cloud 9. Now with this 2010 release date I'm a little saddened. I hope with this extra time I can realistically expect Infogrames/Atari/Crptic Studios to produce an extremely polished game come 2010. In the meantime I guess I'll just edit my copy of Game Informer. It'll be easy seeing as how everyday I check the article to make sure it truly said "Fall 2009".

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Found her on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/people/Nicole-Hamlett/578684050)and LinkedIn. She seems to have a decent CV, but it would've been nice had she made an introduction before locking a thread as her first action.

At any rate, welcome, Awen!

That's a little stalkerish mate. :D














Is she the one on the left or right?

[KlingonWarrior]

I know I am still new on this site but I, personally have been hoping for years to have an a Star Trek MMO. Now it finally seems like it's going to happen and take a look at the latest news. From my previous experiance with game companies being bought out, most games in developement are assessed for potential profitability and those that aren't gonna turn the kind of profit that the company wants gets put on the back burner. Not to mention, they tend to change various parts of the game for the worse. I , personally think this is going to be a bad idea. Hmmm...could we be seeing the demise of STO before it even begins? I hope not, but Now that Atari is buying Cryptic out, it could very well be. And one thing I will say, I have quite a few games that Atari has ownership or control of. And no offense to Atari or its employees, but their game support isn't all that good as far as I have seen.

[JadeEngima]

That's a little stalkerish mate. :D

I disagree. I simply googled her name to learn more about this new name, this new community relations moderator. I am unsure which one she is, however I believe she is the one on the right.

And who you callin' mate?? :p

[Kinneas]

IGN's report: http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/18350/Infogrames-Acquires-Cryptic-Studios/

Infogrames has worked with CBS in the past: http://www.prnewswire.com.au/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/05-17-2001/0001495909&EDATE=

2004 rumor: VIACOM to purchase Infogrames?: http://www.alacrastore.com/deal-snapshot/Viacom_Inc_is_rumored_to_be_planning_to_acquire_In fogrames_Entertainment_SA-391024

IF Viacom purchases Infogrames...( http://www.alacrastore.com/deal-snapshot/Viacom_Inc_is_rumored_to_be_planning_to_acquire_In fogrames_Entertainment_SA-391024 )STAR TREK RETURNS HOME. Star Trek would be totally back under the control and development of Viacom. Which is what many people said Viacom should have done when this started...buy a game developer and hold Star Trek fo themselves if it were considering a TV Show/MMO tie-in.

What's Viacom's Game?: http://www.mcvuk.com/interviews/229/Whats-Viacoms-game

related/un-related?:DiCaprio To Take On Atari Story. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/06/20/tech/gamecore/main4198903.shtml

Atari & EVE Online Partnership; Tuesday, November 11, 2008
MMORPG news: Eve online goes retail; Atari exclusively

Atari and CCP, one of the world's leading independent game developers, today announced a partnership which will see Atari exclusively distribute boxed versions of CCP's award winning PC MMOG, EVE Online. The game will be available in retail outlets in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific regions beginning March 2009. In addition, Atari will provide trade marketing services to augment CCP's consumer marketing initiatives for EVE Online. http://reinouttebrake.blogspot.com/2008_11_01_archive.html

[grimman]

First off welcome AWEN!! Hope you have a good time with us gamers and Star Trek lovers. Secondly I hope it not a late release in 2010. I don't think i will but... I CAN'T TAKE MUCH MORE!!!! :)

[jhem99]

2010???? So that is sooner than we're supposed to think. If that's when it comes out I'll go into suspended animation till then. At least we know Crptic won't go belly up before 2010. I wish I wish for beta in 2009.
Welcome Awen.:confused:

[rikeromega]

I think my head will explode if this game goes back to the drawing board and into redevelopment.

[Wv65fyNyesWmTy8c]

Well at least it appears that all is not lost as it 'could' have been if 'cryptic' went belly up from the economic situation. If Atari continues with the flow of the development to make the StartrekOnline game as was projected then maybe they can make it even better that it would have been.

Besides, I still got my Atari 800xl and Atari 65XE with boosted 1050s, I'm all ready for StartrekOnline! :eek::rolleyes::rolleyes::D

Lets see I'll need entire wall plug ins to get that one up and running and a spare Tv ... Loading Please wait.. (falls asleep)....

[grimman]

One Joystick and the Keypad from Star Raiders is all you'll need for the game then.
:D

[atmtreknut]

2010?!?! crap!!

[Kinneas]

One Joystick and the Keypad from Star Raiders is all you'll need for the game then.
:D

That is funny.

I used to have Star Raiders and the keypad. Loved it. lol

[SIMONLEV]

http://www.massively.com/2008/12/09/...-announcement/

this should be a post on the sto website if its legit. It definitely eased my mind

[callsign11b]

IGN's report: http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/18350/Infogrames-Acquires-Cryptic-Studios/

Infogrames has worked with CBS in the past: http://www.prnewswire.com.au/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/05-17-2001/0001495909&EDATE=

2004 rumor: VIACOM to purchase Infogrames?: http://www.alacrastore.com/deal-snapshot/Viacom_Inc_is_rumored_to_be_planning_to_acquire_In fogrames_Entertainment_SA-391024

IF Viacom purchases Infogrames...( http://www.alacrastore.com/deal-snapshot/Viacom_Inc_is_rumored_to_be_planning_to_acquire_In fogrames_Entertainment_SA-391024 )STAR TREK RETURNS HOME. Star Trek would be totally back under the control and development of Viacom. Which is what many people said Viacom should have done when this started...buy a game developer and hold Star Trek fo themselves if it were considering a TV Show/MMO tie-in.

What's Viacom's Game?: http://www.mcvuk.com/interviews/229/Whats-Viacoms-game

related/un-related?:DiCaprio To Take On Atari Story. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/06/20/tech/gamecore/main4198903.shtml

Atari & EVE Online Partnership; Tuesday, November 11, 2008
MMORPG news: Eve online goes retail; Atari exclusively

Atari and CCP, one of the world's leading independent game developers, today announced a partnership which will see Atari exclusively distribute boxed versions of CCP's award winning PC MMOG, EVE Online. The game will be available in retail outlets in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific regions beginning March 2009. In addition, Atari will provide trade marketing services to augment CCP's consumer marketing initiatives for EVE Online. http://reinouttebrake.blogspot.com/2008_11_01_archive.html

read those links sounds like to me hostile take over from infogames / atari to cryptic to cut out the compition and to secure profit margines in investments that infogames / atari have made with other products due to the fact cryptic was producing good game quality, good gaming engine that cut r&d time to finished product that means lower cost in development and higher returns in online subscriptions and product purchase.
looks like to me there taking alot from cryptic and give little back.

[minago]

looks like to me there taking alot from cryptic and give little back.

well cryptic get's 26 million dollars and well that's good and all ,but if the games don't do well atari will fire a bunch of people or transfer people too other projects and eventually close cryptics doors.....which means cryptic basically would have to start over from scratch....... they got that going for um.

but who knows maybe this will be the first time in like never that something like this works out...

i mean bungie is still with microsoft right (http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2007/oct07/10-05BungieEvolvesPR.mspx)?

[callsign11b]

well cryptic get's 26 million dollars and well that's good and all ,but if the games don't do well infogames will fire a bunch of people or transfer people too other projects and eventually close cryptics doors.....which means cryptic basically would have to start over from scratch....... they got that going for um.

but who knows maybe this will be the first time in like never that something like this works out

star over can't see that they sold there rights to there gaming engine.
and in the articals on the net thats a major topic talked about how infogames / atari was impressed with that gaming engine.

but who knows maybe this is just me crying wolf and getting worried for nothing.
time will tell.

[minago]

star over can't see that they sold there rights to there gaming engine.
and in the articals on the net thats a major topic talked about how infogames / atari was impressed with that gaming engine.

but who knows maybe this is just me crying wolf and getting worried for nothing.
time will tell.

usually when a company buys out another ya get everything lock stock and barrel ....including engine

yeah atari has got the coh engine now ...if cryptic shuts down they would have to make a new one

raven software (http://www.ravensoft.com/)"back when they where partnered with id"
didnt have game engines to work with, all the products they make they have to pay the rights for usage of the engine it self ....and they have made alot of games

in the long run cryptic kinda shot themselves in the foot...

thing is atari was impressed with the engine and regardless of how the products cryptic makes fair out ...atari will have the engine and in the future they can make anything they want outta it....heck they could lease the engine itself and make money off it

[Redshirt_40067]

I don't think Atari published LOTRO. Turbine and Atari worked on D&D online.

Atari was contracted for distribution in AUS/NZ.

[callsign11b]

read these and then let me know .
http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/18350/...yptic-Studios/

http://www.prnewswire.com.au/cgi-bin...1495909&EDATE=


David Gardner, CEO of Infogrames, said: “The acquisition of Cryptic Studios brings to Infogrames an outstanding creative organisation, with a proven track-record of success in the fast-growing MMO category

I am impressed with the tools and technology that Cryptic has developed to make MMOs less expensive to build
Cryptic's toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century
John Needham, Chief Executive Officer of Cryptic Studios I am committed to helping Atari grow into a leading online game company

This transaction is expected to create value for shareholders, with a view to:


significantly contribute to Infogrames’ revenues due to new games and a recurring revenue, subscription and micro transaction based business model;
reduce development risks for future online games developed internally and improve margins due to the low cost structure of the Cryptic engine’s technology and tools;
improve Infogrames’ sales to R&D ratio as Cryptic Studios is known for delivering on-time, on-budget, profitable titles and avoid significant investment to build this activity;
enable the rapid and efficient integration of Cryptic and Atari as both entities are highly complementary;
shift the business model from traditional publishing to a higher margin online business mode

[minago]

Cryptic's toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century


notice that phrase? :D


reduce development risks for future online games developed internally and improve margins due to the low cost structure of the Cryptic engine’s technology and tools;
improve Infogrames’ sales to R&D ratio as Cryptic Studios is known for delivering on-time, on-budget, profitable titles and avoid significant investment to build this activity;
enable the rapid and efficient integration of Cryptic and Atari as both entities are highly complementary;
shift the business model from traditional publishing to a higher margin online business mode

and this one
what they bout was cryptic reputation and now they have there tools ...if the games tank ...they still have the tools for future projects ..now made cheap and easy

[spacecadet1138]

wow, that's kinda odd that the same company now pretty much owns the marketing and distribution of eve online and sto....i always kinda figured that when sto came out it would draw a lot of players from eve. it's not like a pepsi vs. coca cola decision, it's more like an indy venture vs a well established i.p. where the people who've been playing the indy game have been doing so b/c hey let's face it there's no star wars or star trek game like it. by a show of hands...anyone here fit that bill? i know i do. granted, eve has a great backstory, graphics, etc., plus not having to pay for expansions (which is a freakin great idea btw and they seem to be fully able to maintenance the game w/o those revenues-hint hint) but there's several fundamental flaws in the gameplay. never leaving your ship to go planetside, the really odd lack of truly alien races, etc. both of which sto guarantees. i just feel that when sto gets released, that's the end of the line for eve cause atari will not put enough money into properly marketing it and the money ccp put down to deliver retail copies will be in vain. then ccp goes bankrupt atari buys it ftw. then there goes a really great, groundbreaking game fell by the corporate machine. i don't fear for the future of sto nearly as much as i fear for the future of eve.

[Kinneas]

i don't fear for the future of sto nearly as much as I fear for the future of eve.

I don't play it, but my Spidey Sense went off too.

For better or worse.

[Trekkie]

Although it is slightly disappointing to know that the game probably won't come out until 2010, I hope that this is a positive move for Cryptic Studios!

[thefreshjedi]

wow, that's kinda odd that the same company now pretty much owns the marketing and distribution of eve online and sto....i always kinda figured that when sto came out it would draw a lot of players from eve. it's not like a pepsi vs. coca cola decision, it's more like an indy venture vs a well established i.p. where the people who've been playing the indy game have been doing so b/c hey let's face it there's no star wars or star trek game like it. by a show of hands...anyone here fit that bill? i know i do. granted, eve has a great backstory, graphics, etc., plus not having to pay for expansions (which is a freakin great idea btw and they seem to be fully able to maintenance the game w/o those revenues-hint hint) but there's several fundamental flaws in the gameplay. never leaving your ship to go planetside, the really odd lack of truly alien races, etc. both of which sto guarantees. i just feel that when sto gets released, that's the end of the line for eve cause atari will not put enough money into properly marketing it and the money ccp put down to deliver retail copies will be in vain. then ccp goes bankrupt atari buys it ftw. then there goes a really great, groundbreaking game fell by the corporate machine. i don't fear for the future of sto nearly as much as i fear for the future of eve.

Um, you might want to check your facts out a tad more kthx?


Atari Merged with Infogrames, Infogrames went into the crapper, delisted it's securities, and now Atari is pulling back from that. Atari had to reneg on it's share prices and delist its securities, because it failed to meat the stock exchange rules....meaning it's stock price fell below $1.00. Now it would appear that Atari once again is going private, revamping it's corporate assets, and probably kicking a lot of executives out of the their respective chairs at the moment.

SO I wouldn't breath a sigh of relief just yet. We're not quite out of those hot waters just yet.

Regarding EvE vs. STO:


EvE and STO have absolutely nothing in common with each other. Not a thing.

CCP still holds the exclusive rights to EvE, they only allowed Atari to publish it under license from CCP in Box sets in the US. The majority of people can still download the game client directly from CCP/Eve's website.

Oh, and CCP merged with White Wolf, not Atari...


Research for the win.

-Avery

[Kinneas]

Although it is slightly disappointing to know that the game probably won't come out until 2010, I hope that this is a positive move for Cryptic Studios!

Posts from AWEN:

Hi there! I hadn't planned to introduce myself like this, but when in Rome... I'm Nicole or Awen whichever you choose to use. I am the lead community representative for Star Trek Online. (Just started last week so unfortunately I haven't had a lot of time to get to know all of you yet.) I'd like to answer some of the questions that you may have right now about this announcement.

The first thing that you should know is that it will be business as usual for Cryptic Studios. We still haven't announced a release date for STO and most likely will not do so for awhile. We like to keep the mystery building.

Basically, this acquisition allows Cryptic to really focus on making these games even better. Our goals are so closely aligned with those of Atari's new direction, that it accelerates our plans to independantly develop and operate really great games.

Overall, you probably won't see alot of changes, but I want to assure you that we're moving on the same track that we were yesterday and things are good.


I see a recurring theme here. The game has not been pushed back. We are still aiming for a Fall 2009 release. I hope that this quiets your fears.

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.


As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.

[Sir_Cedric]

1st let me say welcome. I have been watching this game from day one, and I for one get a little uneasy when I hear new people taking the lead on development.

I seen the take over of another game under construction called UO2 by EA, and what did they do? Seeing how they took over UO at the time, they felt no need to keep making the second one, and pulled the plug on what I felt would have been a good game at the time.

But that was then and this is now.

As long as everything stays on track, like it's been said, then STO might be the WoW killer I am hoping it can be. There are far more trek Fans in the world vs Wow players, the key will be to get them into playing STO. lol

Anyway, again welcome, and let me one of the 1st to request a spot in the beta for next year please.

Just remember I did say please. ;):D

[CaptainHancock]

Well, here's to hoping that this will not have too much of an impact on the development of the game. I sincerely hope that this will help to make the game even better, even though I'm sure it would have been good anyways.:D

[Kuhr]

I just dont know...What is it with Star Trek? Is it cursed? Jeeezzz, finally get a good idea for a Star Trek game and now this..Now 2010. Sorry folks, thats too long!!! 2010? Come on now! 2009 would be a perfect time for this game to come out. Beta in the spring, release in the late fall or winter or 2009. STO is really pushing fans patients levels. Well, I hope this works out with the new ownership, but I must say 2010 is a long ways away and a lot of things can happen to take ones attention away from this MMO. Well...I check back here from time to time....but life must go on..This just doesnt feel right...Hope Im wrong....Anyways......... :( A Tear falls :( )

[wonka2112]

I disagree. I simply googled her name to learn more about this new name, this new community relations moderator. I am unsure which one she is, however I believe she is the one on the right.

And who you callin' mate?? :p


lol Good detective work! They are both cute.. lol :)

[justicenic]

:mad::eek: personaly i think it is lame that they are joining to gather i liked cryptic small size and great customer service i hope that is not lost now though hopefully this will accelerate the design of the game

[BLZBUB49]

What can I say... /sigh

[Dave_Hoffman]

As long as Cryptic is left alone and given free reign to see their vision for the game through, I'm not too concerned about this. They're the ST fans, after all. Now if Atari/Infogrames starts meddling and saying change this, change that, more guns, who wants a science vessel for non-combative gaming, get rid of it, more fighting, make it more like WoW, that's successful... etc.. than I'd get concerned.

I'd like to think that won't happen, but I've seen publishers sticking their hands into things too many times in the past. Oh well, it could be a lot worse. It could have been EA.

[CaptEdwards]

damm that don't sound gd 2010 damm them. :(

[ArkonPhoenix]

I just now read this and am once again doubtful of STOs future.

[Kandor103]

ok so atarie owns criptic now. That maybe all well and good but i think we fans.who have been watching this thing from the get go has right to know.Just what this means for the games you people have been siking us for.I mean look u started some thing .You got people already forming teams for when the game lunches.So if you guys are planing for any changes.I think we deserv to know.

[Eidolonael]

Awen, Atari, Infogrames, and all other newcomers in the development staff: Welcome.

Resistance is inevitable.

Comments may not seem logical.

The Rules of Acquisition may not necessarily apply...

Regardless, this is a dedicated fan-base... These are dedicated gamers, fans, convention goers, writers, artists, visionaries who embody the essence of what Roddenberry envisioned and gave life to so many years ago. Our fixation immersion is in your hands. I pray you are up to the challenge. You will be confronted by those addicated to the dogma known as canon, you will be harrangued by those seeking freedom of architectural expression, you will be badgered by those seeking multi-perspective ship command, and you will be rewarded if you can provide this expectation in full without concession or willingly cutting corners.

I look forward to experiencing what this new partnership has to offer and takes us where no gamer has gone before.

I would like Icewine with my cheese, please.

[bkm250]

damm that don't sound gd 2010 damm them. :(

:eek:Please...for the sake of us all PLEASE stop complaining about the release date or supposed release date...all the "Waaaah I don't want to WAIT THAT LONG" is going to give them ideas and then before you know WHAM they're gonna crack the whip over Cryptic's backside and we'll have a rushed out, buggy and unfinished game on our hands *coughs AoC*. No, the little kid in me would rathe have it sooner but realistically I will wait as long as it takes because I have that much respect for -

A. Star Trek

B. Cryptic's awesome vision for this game

Would you really like to wait all the time we have already only to have a ****** game that was rushed out? Thereby having waited for nothing?

Please stop the complaining..let the dust settle and pray to GOD that all of our fears are unfounded. That is all we can do.

[Copenhagen]

So...

uh...

yeah...


That's all I have to say about that.

[Calvert]

Welcome to the boards, Awen.

[Magmafire2374]

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.

As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.

See things like this need to be posted on the main page.

I wish Cryptic wasn't so cryptic. We need to read more reassurances like this. It'll help us sleep better at night.

[fizzbin]

Heh, don't think I'd mind if they said 2011 for release date...I'd still be pumped for all of this.

[MaximusPaynicus]

It seems like this could be a good deal all around, provided Atari doesn't go the way of Brash and (soon to be) Midway.

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Hello, Infogrames.

Hello Mr. Bonnell, Mr. Sapet.

Hello, Awen.

Welcome to the Star Trek gaming community. Many here have been following STO for a decade so it is understandable folks are doing a bit of freaking out when things like this happen.
---

Money & resources for Cryptic to make STO is totally a great thing for Cryptic, but might we ask you expand of some of the 'bigger' benefits this can bring to STO or what the new 'resources' are?


Is this going to allow STO to go world-wide easier?
Does it allow combining 'state of the art' technologies? How?
Does this mean bigger things for STO like a TV Show/MMO tie-In?
How does CBS feel? Are you working with CBS/Abrams?
Will you be working with NASA's partnership and licensing program to deliver space and science content for STO?


Anything to help us see what Infogrames 'big picture' for STO is?

If there is one thing we like (especially after a decade of brainstorming and waiting)...it is inspiration.

Might we ask you to try to inspire us?
---
Or Cryptic/Jack/Craig:

What does this mean to you? How does this inspire you?Still waiting for an official response for this one.

[indelible]

I'd just like to drop a bombshell in here:

Atari have confirmed that they will be paying Cryptic Studios performance based bonuses for the fiscal year 2010-11 for BOTH Star Trek Online and Champions Online.

Take from that what you will.

To me, it suggests that the release of Star Trek Online will be prior to April 2010.

[supersaint]

Maybe - http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,46258/
Or Awen The ex-community manager from Jumpgate Evolution... would be my guesses.

Bye-bye STO!!!

[dirlok]

Bye-bye STO!!!

haha, you should really read the entire thread before posting...

[miqrogroove]

ok so atarie owns criptic now. That maybe all well and good but i think we fans.who have been watching this thing from the get go has right to know.Just what this means for the games you people have been siking us for.I mean look u started some thing .You got people already forming teams for when the game lunches.So if you guys are planing for any changes.I think we deserv to know.

We as fans have no "rights" to speak of, but as usual we are left to draw our own conclusions. The franchise once again handed off the license to a company that has failed to get STO off the ground before running out of cash. Now maybe the purchasor can help inject more cash, but in the meantime they have left the audience out to dry.

Coming here after announcing a 2010 release date and then insisting everything is still on track for Fall 2009 with nothing to show but a months-old trailer and a handful of screenshots, that's just bad form. I'm sorry to be so blunt, but I didn't believe that for a moment. Now I think we are looking at a 2010 release if we are lucky, and a lack of honesty about what is happening to the community.

Who's looking forward to another year of screen shots?

[SolarLagoon]

Awen, Atari, Infogrames, and all other newcomers in the development staff: Welcome.

Resistance is inevitable.

Comments may not seem logical.

The Rules of Acquisition may not necessarily apply...

Regardless, this is a dedicated fan-base... These are dedicated gamers, fans, convention goers, writers, artists, visionaries who embody the essence of what Roddenberry envisioned and gave life to so many years ago. Our fixation immersion is in your hands. I pray you are up to the challenge. You will be confronted by those addicated to the dogma known as canon, you will be harrangued by those seeking freedom of architectural expression, you will be badgered by those seeking multi-perspective ship command, and you will be rewarded if you can provide this expectation in full without concession or willingly cutting corners.

I look forward to experiencing what this new partnership has to offer and takes us where no gamer has gone before.

I would like Icewine with my cheese, please.


Greeting All!! This is my very first post on these forums. I have been in the shadows for quite a while here. I chose this topic as my introduction because as I read through the posts and replies here (and I will probably be labeled a bit crazy) I have gotten even MORE excited about this game, if that is even possible. Though I would use a stronger word than dedicated...lol. Obsessed, could fit for now, sums up the fans of this franchise...well lifestyle really. I definitely do not have the vocabulary of this poster, however my passion is the same. As much "freaking out" and negative comments that have been made throughout this thread with release dates and etc., it has shown me just how obsessed this community is. I do believe that the game WILL be released and I can't wait to jump into it and experience it with you ALL. Hmm, maybe you don't need any cheese as that comment was pretty darn cheesy itself.

Awen, as a gamer I'm sure you can understand the questions, etc. This community, however, is a new breed :-D Thanks for your patience with us and taking the time to post. Welcome aboard.

[Lance85]

- Acquisition Will Provide State-of-the-Art Games and Technology Expected to Boost Atari’s Online Business Growth -

LYON, FRANCE - 9 December 2008 – Infogrames Entertainment, the parent company of Atari, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to fully acquire Cryptic Studios Inc., one of the world’s leading developers, publishers and operators of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games.

The transaction encompasses all of Cryptic’s proprietary IP, tools, technology and work-in-progress and integrates all members of the leadership team and employees into Infogrames. This acquisition is a critical step in the implementation of Atari’s strategy to become a leading online game developer and publisher.

Cryptic is currently developing three unique MMO franchises, planned for release over the next three years on PC and next-generation consoles, including Champions Online to be released in 2009 and Star Trek Online to be released in 2010. A third game currently in development will be announced in the near future.

Established in 2000 and headquartered in Los Gatos, California, USA, Cryptic has a proven track record of delivering successful MMO franchises (City of Heroes and City of Villains sold to NCSoft) generating over USD 100 million in lifetime revenues and up to 180,000 peak subscribers.

Cryptic is led by a highly experienced management team who shares Atari’s vision in online gaming and who has committed to stay with the group. Cryptic employs approximately 150 professionals, comprising leading industry creative, technical and operation experts with a proven track record in delivering on-time, on-budget titles. Cryptic’s revenues for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008 amounted to USD 17 million.

Atari will benefit from Cryptic’s powerful proprietary engine, scalable content development tools and online server architecture to deliver very high productivity-per-employee and industry-leading client/server performance and create unique, high quality MMO games on 18 to 24-month cycles. Atari will also gain a proven set of high-quality MMO game operating tools for sophisticated customer service and account management.

David Gardner, CEO of Infogrames, the parent company of Atari, said: “The acquisition of Cryptic Studios brings to Infogrames an outstanding creative organisation, with a proven track-record of success in the fast-growing MMO category. Cryptic’s success is founded on leading-edge technology and the vision of a seasoned executive management team. I am impressed with the tools and technology that Cryptic has developed to make MMOs less expensive to build. Creating vast worlds and interesting interactions can be very people intensive but with the use of Cryptic's toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century.”

“We share a common vision with Atari and their leadership team.” said John Needham, Chief Executive Officer of Cryptic Studios, “With our game development and online platform technology skills, we’re very excited about the opportunities that this unique combination with Atari creates. I am committed to helping Atari grow into a leading online game company and look forward to being part of the team.”

About Cryptic Studios
Cryptic Studios, Inc., based in Los Gatos, CA, and established in July 2000, is one of the leading independent developers of massively multiplayer online games. Cryptic is developing three major titles for the PC and current generation consoles, including Star Trek Online, Champions Online and an unannounced project. For more information on Cryptic Studios, please visit http://crypticstudios.com/.

About Infogrames Entertainment and Atari
The Infogrames group, including the Atari brand, is a global producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment software for all market segments and all interactive game platforms including consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony Computer Entertainment, advanced smartphones, Personal Computers, web and online. Its games are sold in more than 60 countries through an international distribution network and direct to consumers via http://www.atari.com/.

Atari’s extensive catalogue of popular games is based on original franchises (Alone in the Dark, Test Drive, V-Rally, My Horse & Me, Backyard Sports franchise, Total Annihilation, Outcast etc.), publishing properties (The Witcher, Legendary, Race Pro etc.), international licenses (Dragon Ball Z, Dungeons & Dragons, Jamie Oliver etc.) and classic games covering the entire history of the video game industry (Pong, Missile Command, Asteroids etc).

© 2008 Atari Europe SASU. All rights reserved.

Champions, Champions Online, and Cryptic Studios are trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of CBS Studios Inc and used with permission.

I knew all this was too good to be true, so much for star trek online, Atari sucks.

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Funny, I think this will make STO MORE likely to be released. Infogrames need an MMO that is popular to support their business model, Cryptic want to get STO out so they can start making some money off of it. Bonuses and targets have been set relating to the success of the game, this will happen.

[rosjim]

now im realy dissapointed 2010??? its too long why start membership for a game 2 years before you can play??

thanks james

[VisionM]

Atleast they are giving us more than P2 did; I'm suprised, though, that the game takes so long to make, I'm almmost afraid that by the time they release it the MMO wind has passed. Hurry up folks, every month you stall means that WoW's fanbase grows even more, and that's not a good thing...

[Urantia]

Having read every post here I am in the camp of those that are concerned by this development....and no amount of PR and ass kissing commentrary will sway that. What we should really be asking ourselves is whom will finally realease this game? It was not PE, will not be Cryptic, and I would not be surprized if this new "company" did not either.

What I do know for certain is that someday STO will be released....the question is by whom? My apologies if I do not take your word for it Nicole....after all you are only saying what you are told to say. If I even half believed you gave a damn I might think twice. Instead I will work from the other direction....I will now assume the worse and hope that I am sincerely mistaken.

[Bad_Boy]

- Acquisition Will Provide State-of-the-Art Games and Technology Expected to Boost Atari’s Online Business Growth -

LYON, FRANCE - 9 December 2008 – Infogrames Entertainment, the parent company of Atari, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to fully acquire Cryptic Studios Inc., one of the world’s leading developers, publishers and operators of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games.

The transaction encompasses all of Cryptic’s proprietary IP, tools, technology and work-in-progress and integrates all members of the leadership team and employees into Infogrames. This acquisition is a critical step in the implementation of Atari’s strategy to become a leading online game developer and publisher.

Cryptic is currently developing three unique MMO franchises, planned for release over the next three years on PC and next-generation consoles, including Champions Online to be released in 2009 and Star Trek Online to be released in 2010. A third game currently in development will be announced in the near future.

Established in 2000 and headquartered in Los Gatos, California, USA, Cryptic has a proven track record of delivering successful MMO franchises (City of Heroes and City of Villains sold to NCSoft) generating over USD 100 million in lifetime revenues and up to 180,000 peak subscribers.

Cryptic is led by a highly experienced management team who shares Atari’s vision in online gaming and who has committed to stay with the group. Cryptic employs approximately 150 professionals, comprising leading industry creative, technical and operation experts with a proven track record in delivering on-time, on-budget titles. Cryptic’s revenues for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008 amounted to USD 17 million.

Atari will benefit from Cryptic’s powerful proprietary engine, scalable content development tools and online server architecture to deliver very high productivity-per-employee and industry-leading client/server performance and create unique, high quality MMO games on 18 to 24-month cycles. Atari will also gain a proven set of high-quality MMO game operating tools for sophisticated customer service and account management.

David Gardner, CEO of Infogrames, the parent company of Atari, said: “The acquisition of Cryptic Studios brings to Infogrames an outstanding creative organisation, with a proven track-record of success in the fast-growing MMO category. Cryptic’s success is founded on leading-edge technology and the vision of a seasoned executive management team. I am impressed with the tools and technology that Cryptic has developed to make MMOs less expensive to build. Creating vast worlds and interesting interactions can be very people intensive but with the use of Cryptic's toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century.”

“We share a common vision with Atari and their leadership team.” said John Needham, Chief Executive Officer of Cryptic Studios, “With our game development and online platform technology skills, we’re very excited about the opportunities that this unique combination with Atari creates. I am committed to helping Atari grow into a leading online game company and look forward to being part of the team.”

About Cryptic Studios
Cryptic Studios, Inc., based in Los Gatos, CA, and established in July 2000, is one of the leading independent developers of massively multiplayer online games. Cryptic is developing three major titles for the PC and current generation consoles, including Star Trek Online, Champions Online and an unannounced project. For more information on Cryptic Studios, please visit http://crypticstudios.com/.

About Infogrames Entertainment and Atari
The Infogrames group, including the Atari brand, is a global producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment software for all market segments and all interactive game platforms including consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony Computer Entertainment, advanced smartphones, Personal Computers, web and online. Its games are sold in more than 60 countries through an international distribution network and direct to consumers via http://www.atari.com/.

Atari’s extensive catalogue of popular games is based on original franchises (Alone in the Dark, Test Drive, V-Rally, My Horse & Me, Backyard Sports franchise, Total Annihilation, Outcast etc.), publishing properties (The Witcher, Legendary, Race Pro etc.), international licenses (Dragon Ball Z, Dungeons & Dragons, Jamie Oliver etc.) and classic games covering the entire history of the video game industry (Pong, Missile Command, Asteroids etc).

© 2008 Atari Europe SASU. All rights reserved.

Champions, Champions Online, and Cryptic Studios are trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of CBS Studios Inc and used with permission.


Wxactl what we ALLL KNEW would happen. Star Trek Online is being corrupte and no one can do jack about it. cryptic u suck, atari u suck too, and the wholoe cryptic team can just go eat an *******! 2010 haha why not just make it in ten years and fail at it again ya pansies. ya never know maybe the THIRD time is the charm hahahaa

[Falin]

woooo hoooo!

I didn't want to repost on these forums, but friends told me of the buyout and i just had to come and point it out:

a trend:

Company aquires Trek MMO rights, ignores the fans, goes cartoonish campy, goes out of business.

New company picks up IP, ignores fans, goes cartoonish campy, sells IP, goes out of business.

Yet a third company picks up IP, Ignores the fan base, goes cartoonish campy, sells the company.


It seems these companys reaccuring theme is they can not understand they are going the wrong way, can't get investors to buy into it and now finally Cryptic has had to succumb to a big Corporate Enity to get funding. All I can say, I hope Infogames forces them to drop the cartoonish campy design and go with what's right and truely create a new breed of AAA MMO's.

THis is exceptionally good news, normally i find news of this nature distrubing as parent companies tend to mess titles up, but in this case, getting there hands in the mix might be the right thing.

[Manx]

Since people are still going on about 2010...


I see a recurring theme here. :) The game has not been pushed back. We are still aiming for a Fall 2009 release. I hope that this quiets your fears.

Relax, we're cool :)

[Fvillha]

I disagree. I simply googled her name to learn more about this new name, this new community relations moderator. I am unsure which one she is, however I believe she is the one on the right.

And who you callin' mate?? :p

Thats ok, its standard proceedures for all members of the Empire.

Only the truth hurts, which for klingons is welcomed. (odd habit that is, but I am willing to help deliver the pain for them). :rolleyes:

[Bad_Boy]

Since people are still going on about 2010...




Relax, we're cool :)

NEVER trust cryptic game designers.....They know how to lie too. aiming for 2009? yes. releasing in 2010?possibly. The Star Trek IP is idiotically thrown othe window. Everyone knows STO is the FUTURE OF GAMING AND WE HAVE THE BEST PLOTS NAND STORYLINES TO WORK WITH!!!! HOW COULD YOU SCREW THIS UP?!?!?!

[Kinneas]

I've been watching the Atari Live presentation that took place recently: http://www.gamearena.com.au/videos/latest.php/atari-live-2008-keynote-presentation

The Atari HD games are great looking. Ghostbusters looks fantastic.

An 'Atari HD game' rating for STO would be nice.

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Wxactl what we ALLL KNEW would happen. Star Trek Online is being corrupte and no one can do jack about it. cryptic u suck, atari u suck too, and the wholoe cryptic team can just go eat an *******! 2010 haha why not just make it in ten years and fail at it again ya pansies. ya never know maybe the THIRD time is the charm hahahaa

How is STO being corrupted?
What have Atari got to do with anything?
Why can't you spell?
If you're laughing about it so much, why are you so upset?

I reiterate for the people who couldn't be bothered to read a few pages back:

THIS IS GOOD NEWS FOR STO!

I'll try a different explanation tactic here and bullet point it for brevitys (and the members who have already read this) sake:


STO is in a better postion now. An IP with such earning potential as STO is a potential goldmine for them. They will not see this in to vapourware
Cryptic are doing good business here. They have all of the tools needed to make MMOs, but none of the muscle needed to publish them effectively. Infogrames have the muscle, but don't have anything with the weight of STO to publish.
Infogrames are in a weird financial position. They are currently operating with heavy losses, but are reducing them. They will see this as a revenue stream that came drag them out of the myre. Pay t play monthly subscription is far better for the company than making games and hoping they sell well. It is a (within reason) guaranteed source of income for them.
If anyone was to take over Cryptic, Infogrames would be my first choice. There are some horrible publishers out there, Infogrames aren't one of them.
THE RELEASE DATE HAS NOT BEEN PUSHED BACK TO 2010, DEVS HAVE CONFIRMED THIS.


Hopefully that may make a dent in the stupidity some people are spewing forth.

[eNDIE]

now im realy dissapointed 2010??? its too long why start membership for a game 2 years before you can play??

thanks james

you mean like every other gaming company does?:)

[Jaqknife]

Welcome Awen!

[Hunnicut]

I just watched the Atari Live 2008 presentation and it has aleviated my fears for the moment. It seems that what Atari does is strickly Advertising and Distribution and how that is good for Star Trek Online is: it frees up time and money for Cryptic to solely focus on game developement. Which means STO will be an even more amazing game than we already expect it to be. I'm looking foward to 2009 or 10 ... I've already been waiting this long to finally "boldly go where no man has gone before" I can wait just a little longer.

[onesoul1982]

I want to let you know that this acquisition doesn't affect the design or timeline for Star Trek Online. It just means that we have the resources we need to get a good game out the door.

As a gamer, I understand the initial panic that alot of you may be feeling. I've felt it myself a few times in the past, believe me. However, I can assure you that we are heading toward the same goal that we were yesterday in terms of Star Trek Online. Things are continuing completely as they were. It's a good design and a great team. Everything is on course.



Welcome to our community.

I can say,without a doubt if STO is put on the back burner and left to flounder, there are going to be a lot of upset people. Most of us here have been waiting for this game to come into existence since the days of P.E. ,it was a major blow then when STO was killed. The fans of Star Trek and MMO's in general rejoiced when Cryptic took over the license, do not let this community down.

[Eidolonael]

Have Kinneas' questions been answered yet?

Money & resources for Cryptic to make STO is totally a great thing for Cryptic, but might we ask you expand of some of the 'bigger' benefits this can bring to STO or what the new 'resources' are?

Is this going to allow STO to go world-wide easier?
Does it allow combining 'state of the art' technologies? How?
Does this mean bigger things for STO like a TV Show/MMO tie-In?
How does CBS feel? Are you working with CBS/Abrams?
Will you be working with NASA's partnership and licensing program to deliver space and science content for STO?

Anything to help us see what Infogrames 'big picture' for STO is?

If there is one thing we like (especially after a decade of brainstorming and waiting)...it is inspiration.

Might we ask you to try to inspire us?

[callsign11b]

question
i've read somewhere that infogames / atari has investment interests in EVE online.
so if true doesn't something stink.
at least a conflict of interest if you have money tied up in EVE and your wanting your money and extra.
out of it.

why would you jump onboard and invest into a game that will cut your profit margines on a game you already had money in.
unless your thinking of shelving the project until EVE becomes a loss.

[djnattyd]

Love all the "OMG! NOOOOOO! MUST.... KILL.... ATARI!!!" posts, it reminds me of the "OMG! NOOOOOOO! MUST.... KILL.... JJ ABRAMS!!!" posts when the first screenshots for ST:XI were revealed. Seriously, in the current financial crisis it makes sense for Cryptic to merge with a larger company. Yeah Atari have had some stinkers (Driver 3 for instance) but they are a well known brand in the world of gaming, and if you consider the fact that this game is also coming to consoles too, would it not make sense to have a publisher that is recognised by console gamers?

On the 2010 date, all i have to say is; AND?!... What difference does a couple of months make? we've all waited while P2 messed around with us, we waited to see if anyone else would acquire the rights when they folded, and we've waited while Cryptic have started from scratch so stop being so impatient and deal with it. It's not even a "set in stone" date anyway!

[danubus]

Im just going to say this. I am very upset that Cryptic sold out to Atari. I have bought Atari products like NWN1 and NWN2 and was very disappointed with their business practices. They would put out patches for the game after "testing them" and they would still be full of bugs and shoddy. They would promise many things and never deliever them. Then with NWN2 they put DRM into the picture and Im 100% against DRM.

Im going to watch and see how things pan out with both STO and Champions, but this has severely put a huge dent in me wanting to play these games. I've spent years putting up with Atari's incompetence and now they go and buy a company I had much respect for and was eagerly awaiting their new releases. Now, not so much.

[titan7963]

I am currently watching the Atari Live 2008 keynote presentation (link posted by Kinneas on page 16) and I have to agree with Hunnicut that Infogrames/Atari only have their fingers in Advertising/Marketing and Distribution of games.

I believe that this move by Cryptic allows the company to have a World Wide base and have increased revenue flow. We all know the move was about money, and I agree again with Hunnicut that this frees up cash flow for Cryptic so that they can focus all attention to making a great game.

I encourage everyone to watch the Atari Live 2008 presentation (especially the first 10 minutes) to get a better idea of what Infogrames/Atari does.

http://www.gamearena.com.au/videos/latest.php/atari-live-2008-keynote-presentation

I hope this gives everyone just a bit of breathing room now :)

[Kestrel]

Welcome to our community.

I can say,without a doubt if STO is put on the back burner and left to flounder, there are going to be a lot of upset people. Most of us here have been waiting for this game to come into existence since the days of P.E. ,it was a major blow then when STO was killed. The fans of Star Trek and MMO's in general rejoiced when Cryptic took over the license, do not let this community down.

Make no mistake, STO is NOT being put on the back burner!

We're getting the full resources we need to make the best game possible. I see this as a big positive for Cryptic and STO.

[KlingonWarrior]

Im just going to say this. I am very upset that Cryptic sold out to Atari. I have bought Atari products like NWN1 and NWN2 and was very disappointed with their business practices. They would put out patches for the game after "testing them" and they would still be full of bugs and shoddy. They would promise many things and never deliever them. Then with NWN2 they put DRM into the picture and Im 100% against DRM.

Im going to watch and see how things pan out with both STO and Champions, but this has severely put a huge dent in me wanting to play these games. I've spent years putting up with Atari's incompetence and now they go and buy a company I had much respect for and was eagerly awaiting their new releases. Now, not so much.

NWN 1 was mainly Bioware...Atari was loosely connected with it. They actually do have more control over NWN 2 though.(I am a very active member on the NWN forums). But I do agree with you on Ataris practices. Though I won't go as far as to say they are imcompetent. What's sad is we have only two choices here...wait and see what happens or forget STO completely. I do also agree with a lot of others on here about the fact that we have waited this long...what's a little longer. I will say this much though....If Atari screws this up I will stop buying their products...if they do good with this I'll be the first to congratulate them.

[Naemi]

Hello and welcome Awen.
Watch out for flying beer bottles, this is a wild bunch.
I'm happy Cryptic is still on track and even got bigger funding.
I'm still saying I can't wait, but do take the time you feel is necessary.

To Cryptic : Hurray for Cryptic !
To Atari : Uh... Hurray for Cryptic !

[Silhouette]

NWN 1 was mainly Bioware...Atari was loosely connected with it. They actually do have more control over NWN 2 though.(I am a very active member on the NWN forums). But I do agree with you on Ataris practices. Though I won't go as far as to say they are imcompetent. What's sad is we have only two choices here...wait and see what happens or forget STO completely. I do also agree with a lot of others on here about the fact that we have waited this long...what's a little longer. I will say this much though....If Atari screws this up I will stop buying their products...if they do good with this I'll be the first to congratulate them.


I agree

Atari has been bought and sold so many times the mere mention of the name Atari should send shivers down your spines.

The Atari of the 80's and even NWN2 is not the same. I believe Atari was just sold again the last few months they just wanted the Atari IP. For some reason when people here Atari they get all excited, I just get an image of a chewed up piece of bubblegum on the pavement.

What could Infrograms (Atari) bring to the table that Cryptic doesnt already have? Only time will tell.

Unfortunatly the possible loss of creative freedom and and a larger company like Infogrames does not a good MMO make.

Again only the passage of time will see if any of this will actually bear bitter fruit.

My biggest fear is having STO be put into mothballs again.

Sil

[Eidolonael]

Hello and welcome Awen.
Watch out for flying beer bottles, this is a wild bunch.
I'm happy Cryptic is still on track and even got bigger funding.
I'm still saying I can't wait, but do take the time you feel is necessary.

To Cryptic : Hurray for Cryptic !
To Atari : Uh... Hurray for Cryptic !

Beer? More like jagged-edged broken bottles of Bloodwine, fragmented remnants of shattered Romulan ale bottles, and canonballed empty Quark's Bar Warp Core Breach drinkware.

[MikeJ]

Awen, releasing "Fall 2009" means less than 9 months from now. How is that even realistic? There's going to be 6+ months of testing followed by manufacturing, and these obviously haven't begun. There has been no real news about this game in between the trailer and today's takeover announcement. And given this game's history, many of us know to expect the worst.

So honestly, what is going on in there?

Amen to that.... HAHAHAHA...... Don't **** down my back and tell me it's raining.....

[miqrogroove]

Beer? More like jagged-edged broken bottles of Bloodwine, fragmented remnants of shattered Romulan ale bottles, and canonballed empty Quark's Bar Warp Core Breach drinkware.

I'll throw the kanar if you throw the Aldebran whiskey :)

[Elanel]

I'm quite happy about the news as it gives Cryptic access to further resources to operate with, which is a good thing. In the short term I can't see how this will be bad for STO. As for possible delays, there are always delays in MMO development, so I won't lose too much heart if the release does get pushed back from Fall '09, though I naturally don't want that. They might tie in the MMO release with the DVD release of the movie for maximum exposure. It'll be a good year for Star Trek.

[Captain_Gonru]

While the Atari name is big, ask yourself this. "What is the last good (and I mean Good) Atari game that you played?"

[Asylum_Swordsman]

Im just going to say this. I am very upset that Cryptic sold out to Atari. I have bought Atari products like NWN1 and NWN2 and was very disappointed with their business practices. They would put out patches for the game after "testing them" and they would still be full of bugs and shoddy. They would promise many things and never deliever them. Then with NWN2 they put DRM into the picture and Im 100% against DRM.

Im going to watch and see how things pan out with both STO and Champions, but this has severely put a huge dent in me wanting to play these games. I've spent years putting up with Atari's incompetence and now they go and buy a company I had much respect for and was eagerly awaiting their new releases. Now, not so much.

I personally disagree with your view, but this is actually the only sensible post I have seen on the issue, well done.

I don't know how much louder I can shout this here....

Infogrames have bought Cryptic. Not Atari.

This is the difference in saying Groove Networks is bidding for Yahoo, it is just wrong. Microsoft, who own Groove, bid for Yahoo. Maybe Cryptic will fly under the Atari brand, maybe not, but make no mistake that Atari is a wholly owned subsidiary of Infogrames. They run the show.

[LordYaro]

First of all, this is not a "sky is falling" situation here. Allow me to explain how this will work:

A larger corp comes in and buys up Cryptic and now Cryptic has more assets to throw at a game. As long as the game is being developed smoothly and there are no problems in the works that are throwing a wrench into the mix there will be no reason to cancel the game. Most of the problems happen in the creation of the engine but since we have no need for one to be made there is no problems there.

If Infogrames wants a good strong MMO that cryptic is known for then they will keep the hands off. The reason for this is simple, it is easier to smile and nod and get a good game. Microsoft is a good example of this with Bungie when they made it. They got good people to make a good game* and they mostly sat back and watched the profits come in.

Now I am going to assume that the heads of Infogrames is not stupid enough to upset a large and potentially profitable sub-group like this one. Also it would be insane to let all the work of a working, but not finished, game to fall away. Add on top of that the fact that Star Trek has such a large audience that is so broad that they will get all types of player and even pull in players who have never played an MMO just because of the title alone. There are too many reasons to keep going.

If this is the case, then there is nothing to worry about. Cryptic will make their game the way they want, with the accessibility that they are known for (CoH/CoV was very accessible even to non-hardcore MMO players). We will get our game that we will expect. Infogrames will get their profits. Everyone will be happy.

Infogrames, it should be noted, does not want to upset either. Even in bottom line thinking we will make them money and if we are upset at them we will only serve to hurt their profits. Again, no reason to disrupt the game. They will make a profit and even though it will not be a World of Warcraft killer it will still make money.

That is looking at the situation with the most skeptical view as I can see it. Cryptic just got resources and Infogrames got a potential profit that is a pretty safe bet. If worse comes to worse we all know where the phasers are.

* I don't care much for Halo, not my cup of tea (Earl Grey. Hot. FYI), but it did well in sales and it had some of the best controls for a console shooter since Goldeneye when I tried it out.

[iconezell]

Come on guys, you tell us fall of 2009 and now you say 2010. A whole extra year for players to wait for a game that could change the face of Star Trek gaming (which has been quite horrible through the years). Do something to get this game released sooner! We have nothing to play! We need trek. Release a demo or a beta soon, maybe even another Star Trek game to keep us busy.


lets start a vote or something to get this game out sooner!

[djnattyd]

lets start a vote or something to get this game out sooner!

Err... No.

Rushed games = crap gameplay, tons of bugs and :(

Time spent developing = great game, small amount of glitches, and :D

[Aslan_chShran]

2010? Not to rush the project, but a year or two before Star Wars was a good idea, a year or less before Star Wars is a BAD IDEA.

[djnattyd]

Why are people still banging on about 2010?

If you took the time to read Awens' posts then you'll see that it was an ERROR and the date hasn't been changed

Jack Emmertt even states the time period in the interview posted on the STO Frontpage

READ IT!!!!!!!!!!

[zinc]

My biggest fear is having STO be put into mothballs again.


You have nothing to fear.

This is an awesome deal for Cryptic, for Atari - and most importantly - for you guys. This guarantees that Star Trek Online will see the light of day and you guys will get to experience it!

I think LordYaro summed up a lot of the arguments around why this is good for the game. Nobody spends millions of dollars on a game company to shut them and their products down. : ) You acquire them if you think they're experienced, have a good plan and are on track to deliver awesome games. Then, afterwards - why would mess with that?

(Oh yeah - you also don't _sell_ your game company if the buyer isn't going to let you make your games!)

This is great news for STO - the dev team is very excited about this - now we can focus 100% on making game.

-Zn

[callsign11b]

I think I can speak from the fan base is
we are very excited about this game.
we have been disapointed in the track record of companies trying to get this game out in one form or another.
and cryptic style and history had once again inspired us (fans) that this game would see the light of day.
but with recent developements with the selling of cryptic and the different comments of release date ( double talk) has made fans worried again that the history of this game would be repeated.
All the information given or read about sounds great but we all know what positive media spin is.
so I look forward to release of this game And I prey that cryptic dev. team stand strong and produce a great game.

[AaronH]

I think LordYaro summed up a lot of the arguments around why this is good for the game. Nobody spends millions of dollars on a game company to shut them and their products down. : )

If I had a multimillion dollar business, I would buy up as many developers as I could find, just to shut them down and crush the hopes of all those fans who have been waiting with bated breath. As their chearful smiles and hopeful faces fade with the the dawning horror of what I have done, I will stand triumphant over the decimated ruins of their hopes and dreams, and they'll look up, their faces dejected and all light from their world gone, and they'll plead for me to see reason, to feel kindness, they'll beg for me to save the project they have invested so much of their soul into,

And I'll laugh.

Mwahahahaahahahahahaaha. and that sort of thing.

[Kinneas]

If I had a multimillion dollar business, I would buy up as many developers as I could find, just to shut them down and crush the hopes of all those fans who have been waiting with bated breath. As their chearful smiles and hopeful faces fade with the the dawning horror of what I have done, I will stand triumphant over the decimated ruins of their hopes and dreams, and they'll look up, their faces dejected and all light from their world gone, and they'll plead for me to see reason, to feel kindness, they'll beg for me to save the project they have invested so much of their soul into,

And I'll laugh.

Mwahahahaahahahahahaaha. and that sort of thing.

"...and then I'll stop...and realize...wow...this silly little thing that can be made for under 50 million dollars to start has the potential (because of those whiners) to make 100 million plus in box sales alone, 800 million in the first year and if I tie-it into a new show and let folks participate in making their fake, b.s. canon amd get NASA to throw in an endorsement, I could be looking at what WoW actually makes. I mean...everyone wants something that can take on WoW...but this could actually do it.

So...I could be looking at 69 to 100 million a month in RAW PROFIT shortly. Hmmm. This ONE product, because of the Star Trek gaming and viewing fans could make more money in just a few years than Star Trek has made in it's entire life span. I could own the world...NO! The UNIVERSE!

: Opens arms : SPACE LORD, MOTHER MOTHER!!!

Whew....... If I don't do this, all the other big dog, Dr. Evil types like myself will make fun of me because I won't have enough money to get sharks with fricken' lasers on their heads like they can.

Man, I hate that those Star Trek geeks! My very real chances of taking over anything now rests in their hands. I hate them!

GET ME NASA and CBS ON THE LINE, NOW! They had better tie this into the MMO. I've lost SOOOO much time...Sci-Fi channel and Trion World Network already say they are going to do a TV Show MMO Tie-In by 2010! ARG!

You hear me, Smithers!? I hate them!"


"I hear you, Mr. Burns." (http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/2694/daggerofthemind1mrburnsij6.jpg)





---------

[Dominion1971]

Uhh... Ok? I dont get it.. but ok.. what ever makes you feel good I guess

[Flatfingers]

Nobody spends millions of dollars on a game company to shut them and their products down. : ) You acquire them if you think they're experienced, have a good plan and are on track to deliver awesome games. Then, afterwards - why would mess with that?

Mmm. Let's maybe put it a little more specifically: Nobody spends millions to acquire a developer with the intention of shutting down whatever it was that made acquiring that developer strategically desirable.

Except that's precisely what has happned to acquired development studios in the past.

Electronic Arts in particular was known for this. EA would identify a developer with what looked to be a popular IP. (A self-publishing studio was an even bigger target.) EA would then woo the studio's owners with the promise that with EA's money, they could afford to really express their creative vision.

Once acquired, EA would provide the studio with an improved business structure, which generally helped over the short term. But then, ineluctably, EA management would proceed to impose their "creative" views on that previously golden development team... and that would be the end.

They did it with Origin. They did it with Bullfrog. They did it with Westwood. And those teams lost their ability to make great games.

(Somehow, they didn't do it with Maxis. That would be the exception to the rule.)

Lest anyone think this is merely some rant by one of those people who seems to take pleasure in throwing hate at EA (or SOE, or any other game publisher), it's not. First, I'm not one of those people. Second, these aren't just my opinions; they're the views of EA's John Riccitiello himself.

As Riccitiello said (http://blog.wired.com/games/2008/02/riccitiello.html) in February of 2008:

"The command and conquer model doesn't work. If you think you're going to buy a developer and put your name on the label... you're making a profound mistake."

If the CEO of Electronic Arts is willing to acknowledge that, I think it's not unreasonable for fans of Cryptic to express a little concern over its voluntary engulfment by Infogrames/Atari.

In fairness, EA over the past year has said that it understands its past errors and won't repeat them with its new conquests: BioWare, Pandemic, Mythic. And so far, that seems mostly to be the case.

Mostly. There are signs of cracks in that restraint, as noted in an October, 2008, Gamasutra interview of Riccitiello (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=20652) on the subject of the crucial design choice of first-person perspective in DICE's Mirror's Edge:

Riccitiello says that at first, the idea of a first-person game with no shooting seemed risky and made him "a little freaked out" as a concept. In a particular meeting on the title, he was "pushing the bejesus" out of the idea that the game should be a third-person title.

"I was totally convinced that game needed to be third-person and not first-person, because I wanted to see Faith," Riccitiello says. Hence the DICE-developed game’s titular mirrors – "It didn’t have mirrors in it before the meeting -- I got mirrors so you can see her."

So how long will it be before that kind of meddling by business/marketing types in creative game design decisions becomes the norm at EA again?

And is there any hard evidence to support a belief that Infogrames will show even that much restraint toward Cryptic over the next couple of years?

On balance, noting what Infogrames president Phil Harrison said (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18760) in May, 2008, about believing in multiplayer as the future of computer gaming (over single-player games), as well as comments from Ubisoft (http://www.edge-online.com/news/ubisoft-lost-cryptic-atari) on their losing attempt to acquire Cryptic, I think I'm willing to give this deal the benefit of the doubt. Infogrames may indeed have been the best match for Cryptic in what apparently was its ongoing effort to find a corporate parent. I sincerely hope this deal will work out to the advantage of both Cryptic and Infogrames, and ultimately to gamers.

All I'm saying here is that the skeptics are not completely unjustified in their concerns. So let's see whether the mid-level creative talent chooses to stay at Cryptic over the next year or two. If most employees choose to stay (barring the usual moves and shuffling of team members), then I think we can reasonably hope for continued success from Cryptic in its new incarnation.

--Flatfingers

[starbuck1771]

Always people watching from the shadows.....and when they finally decide to come out and speak you get dumped on with news like this.....I suppose next we will be told that Perpetual has regained the helm. What a fickle world we live in.

It wouldn't surprise me since Atari's Bioware is makeing a Star Wars MMO, I don't think CBS will care much for this merger and yank away the license the first chance they get. Sounds about as retaeded as FOX pulling the development of the Firefly MMO to make a buffy the vampire slayer mmo. I guess some people are just stupid when it comes to business while dealing other peoples intalectual propertys.

[Jdncc1701]

To be honest I was a little shaken by this news!
Will Cryptic Studios remain Cryptic Studios or will it be absorbed into Atari?
Well, except for that horrible E.T game I have not been displeased with anything that Atari has released.
So here is to the future and keeping us well away from SOE!
Welcome Atari and Infrogames!

[CaptEdwards]

im just happy we r getting news lol

[SenshiBat]

I belive there is and old earth adage for this Captain
"They can say anything they want as long as they spell my name right?"

[joem41577]

As a loyal fan of all things Trek, I've been dissapointed more times than I can count when it comes to ANYTHING in the way of a Star Trek game since Interplay disappeared and took the 25th anniversary with it. Which is why after I saw that cryptic seems too have some real fans behind the scenes I have hope once again! Wonder if the Organians had anything to do with this meeting of the minds? Peace and Long Life, Star Trek MMO!

[bitgolem]

I am so sick of seeing great studios bought and swallowed up by corporate giants. I suffered through Microproses rape in the 90s, and now it's Cryptics turn.
A big corporation like Infogrames is the emperor and Cryptic is Anakin. The Emperor wants to bend him to his own will by exploiting his good intentions. All that remains are suffering and death.

[SenshiBat]

I miss Wild Bill Stealy and Microprose..He did have Imagic.. until origins EA assumulated his weakend bank account and Big player base.. Then starved AirWarrior so it could not compete with their product..

[samatia]

Hello i would like to ask you dev team if its cool will we be able to have more then one ship like store the ships at our starbase ? :)

[miqrogroove]

FYI - Razor has a cold, otherwise you'd see him posting in here today as well. :)

Cardassian virus, right? >_>

[MagunKnight]

I am kind of worried at this news, I have been waiting far to long for STO to be just dumped over "paper work".

[miqrogroove]

FYI - Razor has a cold, otherwise you'd see him posting in here today as well. :)

Going on week #6 now.