Chris Kohler
Culture

Newsweek's Chat With Phil Harrison

Phil Harrison, former Sony exec and new president of Atari parent company Infogrames, made his public debut at a New York City press event for Atari’s upcoming Alone In The Dark game. Newsweek’s N’Gai Croal caught up with Harrison briefly and relays his impressions of their chat: We told him that we hadn’t seen much […]

Philatari273 Phil Harrison, former Sony exec and new president of Atari parent company Infogrames, made his public debut at a New York City press event for Atari's upcoming Alone In The Dark game.

Newsweek's N'Gai Croal caught up with Harrison briefly and relays his impressions of their chat:

We told him that we hadn't seen much in the way of informed reaction, but that the fanboys seemed confused by his decision to jump ship from Sony to Infogrames. "That's understandable," Harrison replied, smiling a knowing Mona Lisa smile as he spoke. You might say, what's he got to grin? If all goes well, Level Up may soon be in a position to know, so stay tuned.

So is N'Gai saying that we'll soon hear about why Harrison made such a controversial move? Hopefully he'll shed some light on the situation by going public sooner rather than later.

It's clear from Newsweek's brief piece, though, that a big reason Harrison jumped ship was to start working with David Gardner, Infogrames' new CEO and a 25-year veteran of Electronic Arts.

From all appearances, it seems that the two of them have been talking for quite a while about leaving the companies where they'd become superstars and doing something on their own, related to online gaming.

Atari, then, seemed like a perfect opportunity: A brand that should be very strong but with nothing backing it up, no executives, a chance to start from zero.
Phil Harrison Makes Public Debut [Newsweek]

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