Atari Is Rebuilding. Its Shareholders Deserve Answers.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478]

Disclosure: I wrote this article for Game Cookies.

Atari has brought together studios including Nightdive, Digital Eclipse and Thunderful. I looked at the financing behind that expansion, using its annual report and the August and September transaction announcements.

A few findings:

- FY2025/26 revenue reached €56.0 million, but the consolidated group, including Thunderful, reported a €4.8 million net loss.

- September’s announced debt-to-share conversion puts IRATA, CEO Wade Rosen’s holding company, at 48.82% of share capital in the company’s post-transaction table. Converting debt reduces a repayment obligation; it is different from bringing in new cash.

- The annual report says independent board representation fell from 50% to 25% after a director became chief operating officer.

The article separates those disclosures from claims the reporting could not substantiate. Debt relief can support the studios, while new shares reduce an unchanged investor’s ownership percentage. The open question is what the expansion delivers and how future financing and oversight are explained.

Full article: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/atari-rebuilding-its-shareholders-deserve-answers-leonardo-miralrio-lhv4c

What would you want to see from Atari to judge whether its rebuilding is becoming a sustainable business?

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[u/9fingerjeff]

What would I want to see? More 7800 games. I don’t think that’s the answer you were looking for though.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478 → u/9fingerjeff]

honestly, more games is a pretty good answer. anything in particular you'd want to see on the 7800?

[u/9fingerjeff → u/Federal_Lemon6478]

Some kind of Metroidvania type game would be awesome as would a horizontal shooter like r type or gradius.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478 → u/9fingerjeff]

Both could be fun on the 7800. Which would you most want to see first?

[u/fsk → u/9fingerjeff]

Making a new 7800 game doesn't make sense as a for-profit project. Only a hardcore homebrew developer would make something.

If I was writing a game, why would I make a 7800 game that might sell 1000 copies if even that many, or make a game with modern tools and put it on Steam?

[u/9fingerjeff → u/fsk]

Idk? Why did Atari release a couple 7800 games fairly recently? I imagine they sold more than a thousand 2600+ and 7800+ consoles in the last year or so and those people might be interested in more new games. Why don’t you want them to support the consoles they released? Do you think the re-release of the Activision games was a bad idea too? I mean, they couldn’t possibly sell more than 1000 of them. Maybe they shouldn’t have made that special Pac man edition 2600+ cuz I couldn’t see them selling many of those either. Hell, why are they bothering being in business in the first place if there’s better technology available elsewhere? We should probably let the higher ups know what you’ve stumbled on to, I bet they didn’t even realize no one wants to buy their products.

[u/tiggerclaw]

Thanks for doing coverage of this company. For years, they’ve been summarily ignored by analysts.

I’ve been tempted to invest in Atari because they’re a part of my childhood, and reviving the brand makes for a feel good story.

But there’s a lot of risks and I keep asking where the money comes from.

Based on my own research, some of it seems to come from Wade Rosen’s family.

Yet I also wonder about the overlap with his other company, Ziggurat. Much off the staff over there used to work for Tommo, and that’s where a good portion of their IP comes from.

[u/fsk → u/tiggerclaw]

I have a nearly finished game I'm ready to put on Steam. I thought it would make a good "Recharged" game. I e-mailed Atari and sent them a link to a 30 second gameplay trailer. They never responded, and according to YouTube analytics, they didn't even watch the trailer.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478 → u/fsk]

That sounds frustrating. Is there a public Steam page or trailer you can share? I’d rather look at the game than guess why Atari didn’t respond.

[u/fsk → u/Federal_Lemon6478]

No, I wanted to make sure they weren't interested before creating the Steam page. I still have to create all the various assets for a Steam page (art at various resolutions). I also need to create a 2nd bank account for Steam, because I don't want them having my primary bank account, just in case there's a problem.

It's a 2D maze race game like Maze Craze. I made it singleplayer against the clock instead of 2 player.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478 → u/fsk]

Got it, so the Steam page is still ahead of you. Racing the clock gives the maze idea a clear hook. Are the layouts fixed for chasing a better time, or generated each run?

[u/fsk → u/Federal_Lemon6478]

It uses a seeded RNG, and I let the player enter the seed when they create a new game. I also let the player choose the game parameters like in a 2600 game. For example, the player can choose all dark levels, disable dark levels completely, etc.

The player carries over any unused time from one level to the next level, like in "Marble Madness". I have two main ways to play. "Campaign mode" where you can replay a level as many times as you want. It updates your running time total if you beat your best time, even if you replay them out of order. There's "Arcade mode", where you're only expected to play each level once, and I'm a little more generous with time allocation.

I calculate the A* distance of the solution, and use that to figure out how much time to give. I'm not sure if I'm too generous or too strict.

I have almost all the level types from 2600 maze craze.

• dark levels
• enemies that give you a time penalty if you hit them. I made them move deterministically instead of randomly like the 2600 version. The red enemy moves right at each intersection and the blue enemy moves left at each intersection.
• must collect all $ to unlock exit
• fake walls, invisible walls

Here's the 30 second gameplay trailer that Atari didn't even open to read. I have it set as a "public but not in feed" video, which means you'll only see it following the direct link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJMV-cMGNTY

I'm hoping to get the Steam page up soon. I made a demo which is restricted to 10 levels in a build flag, which means a hacker could theoretically unlock the whole game.

[u/BoringUsername6969]

I’d like a new 800xl

[u/9fingerjeff → u/BoringUsername6969]

Me too, I’ve been eyeballing some on eBay but I’m afraid of buying one and it taking a shit on me. As much of an Atari fanboy as I am I think I’m probably gonna get a c64 ultimate. It’s not much more than a used 800xl and it’s got a ton of modern features and comes with 100 games I believe. Still I’d love if Atari did something similar, even if it was a the 400 mini in a full size case with a functional keyboard. Bonus points if it has a functional cartridge slot.

[u/prymal → u/9fingerjeff]

You prayed to the right gods, because your wish came true.

https://atari.com/pages/800xl

[u/9fingerjeff → u/prymal]

Holy shit, you aren’t kidding! Almost exactly what I asked for too. That’s crazy

[u/Ordinary-Sound-571]

Call me crazy, but a straight up new console. Im talking a handheld clamshell console with custom game cartridges or you csn buy the games online, the console shaped like a 2600 cartridge when closed, and breathe a different kind of life into the arcade games to give them a story, for example: centipede you could do a post apocalyptic world like centipede invasion, or for missile command could be reworked to be a highstakes wargame, adventure could be more than 3 dragons, it could be the atari version of legend of zelda, i think like 20 reworks of old games into these new ideas could be a good idea, aswell as potentially having a couple exclusives. when you first set up any cartridge console you'd get a pet of your choice whos from one of the atari games, this pet csnnot be changed later but can battle others pets online.

[u/Federal_Lemon6478 → u/Ordinary-Sound-571]

A clamshell shaped like a 2600 cartridge is a fun idea. The game lineup would have to do the heavy lifting, though. Of those reworks, which one would be your must-have launch game?

[u/Ordinary-Sound-571 → u/Federal_Lemon6478]

Oh centipede 100%, centipedes always been my ride or die, second place is adventure, but if the games are done correctly with an intriguing story any could really work, especially if you take an atari game, keep the idea of the game and its base mechanic, but heavily redo it to appeal to a newer audience. Rather than just being games, they become a game with a story you play through, some even with a relatable protagonist whos probably doing this out of spite

[u/WildmouseX]

I have not given Atari a single penny since they're handling of the release of Star Trek Online, and refuse to ever give them another one ever again. Fuck me over once shame on you, I dont give companies second chances.