Yes, it's true, I've resigned from Shiny.
You can read about it from the Orange County Register. (My local paper.)
This is a cut and paste...
Friday, February 17, 2006
Shiny Entertainment founder resigns
By TAMARA CHUANG
The Orange County Register
The head of Shiny Entertainment in Newport Beach resigned just before parent Atari Inc. announced plans today that include the sale of its internal game studios, including Shiny.
David Perry said that he resigned Thursday because he wants to find the perfect buyer for the game studio he started in 1993. The money-losing Atari is in the process of restructuring and said today it would cut 20 percent of its workforce. Last year, Atari said it had about 490 employees.
Perry said that gamers know Shiny for its innovation, from its first hit "Earthworm Jim" to the recent "Enter the Matrix." But costs to develop innovative games are high and Shiny needs an owner willing to make the investment, he said.
"Atari can go ahead and sell Shiny but I think I can help too because I�??m on the board of a lot of things. I can bring a lot of parties to the table and I can do that faster if I hit the streets myself," said Perry, who began hitting his contacts Friday and said there was "a lot of interest out there."
"If I�??m an employee of Atari, then I�??d be stepping all over them. This way, I�??m representing a buyer. I can act swiftly and get buyers on the table. I pitched Shiny last time and got $47 million."
"Last time" was 2002, when game publisher Interplay sold Shiny to Atari for $47 million. The new owner would get at least three games that Shiny�??s 56 employees are currently working on. One is a sequel to Earthworm Jim.
"To be clear, I cannot sell the company but I can get publishers excited about the company enough to get a bidding war going on," said Perry, who plans to rejoin Shiny after he finds the right buyer.
Atari officials could not be reached today. Earlier this month, Atari said it would focus on getting games made thorugh external development studios.
(c) Orange County Register
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