Atari Digital has announced an agreement to acquire Eclipse. The studio is known for its expertise in digitally restoring and preserving retro titles such as Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration.
According to A Press release, Atari aims to expand its in-house development and further support its retro-focused growth strategy (referring to its acquisition of Night Dive Studios earlier this year) by leveraging Digital Eclipse’s proprietary technology and experience. Atari says Digital Eclipse will benefit by gaining access to “world-class IP” to further its business and development capabilities.
Atari is spending $6.5 million on the acquisition ($4 million in cash, $2.5 million in newly issued Atari shares), with up to $13.5 million remaining in cash over the next 10 years based on the studio’s future performance. The purchase will be completed in the next few days.
Atari 50: An Anniversary Celebration
Founded in 1992, Digital Eclipse began creating commercial emulations of arcade classics such as Joust, Robotron: 2084 and Defender. The studio has produced more than 250 games. Since 2015, it has made its name creating quality collections of classic game series. It includes well-received bundles such as Mega Man Legacy Collection, Disney Afternoon Collection, TMNT: Cowabunga Collection, Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration and The Making of Karateka.
These collections not only restore lost classics for a new generation of players to enjoy, but also include concept art, original design documents, and long-lost development materials, including the critically acclaimed Atari 50 and The Making of cases. Karateka, a documentary-style piece where developers share stories about the creation of games.
“Digital Eclipse is the best in the world at what it does,” Atari President and CEO Wade Rosen said in a press release. “He has a deep love and respect for the history of the games industry and is known for developing critically acclaimed projects based on historic franchises. Digital Eclipse, along with Nightdive, is a perfect alignment with Atari’s DNA and renewed purpose. I’m personally excited to see where we can push the boundaries of retro innovation together.
Digital Eclipse President and Creative Director Mike Mika added, “Our experience with Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration was revelatory. The trust Atari showed in our team and our obvious mutual love and respect for the subject positioned us to produce something truly remarkable. Atari will continue to champion our approach for years to come.” I know we will bring exciting new projects to the fans.
For more on Atari, check out our recent 90-minute interview with Wade Rosen on our All Things Nintendo podcast.
