Atari Announces the $100,000 Pong® Indie Developer Challenge

[Mattlab]

Atari is very proud to have the pleasure of announcing a recent development within the Atari brand. The Indie Pong Development Challenge is calling on entrants to reimagine Atari’s classic Pong for a chance to win up to $100,000 and see their vision go from concept to market. #PongDevChallenge

See http://atari.com/pongdeveloperchallenge for the official contest page and more information!

Official Announcement from Atari

Originally Posted by http://atari.com/pongdeveloperchallenge

Atari Announces the $100,000 Pong® Indie Developer Challenge

Winners Receive Cash Prize, Publishing Agreements, and Industry Accolades

LOS ANGELES – February 28, 2012 - In celebration of Atari’s and Pong’s 40th anniversary, the company today announced the official start of its Pong® Indie Developer Challenge, calling on entrants to reimagine the classic game for a chance to win up to $100,000 and see their vision go from concept to market. Beginning February 28, 2012, developers can submit their original take on Pong® for iPhone®, iPad® and iPod® touch devices, with finalists launching their games on the App Store later this year under the Atari brand. Winning entries will also receive a long-term publishing agreement with Atari that includes development, creative resources and full marketing support. Submissions are now being accepted until March 31, 2012, 11:59pm ET, at: www.atari.com/pongdeveloperchallenge

Following the success of Atari’s recent indie-developed mobile games including Asteroids®: Gunner™, Atari’s Greatest Hits© and Breakout®: Boost, the Pong® Indie Developer Challenge opens the door for up-and-coming developers to deliver the next smash hit. The judging panel will include notable industry figureheads, including original Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, infamous Pocket God creator Dave Castelnuovo, TUAW’s Mike Schramm, and select members of Atari’s executive team. Atari fans can participate by submitting their own votes during the selection of an Atari Community Winner. An additional community voting period will also help to determine overall contest winners, details of which will be revealed soon.

“The Pong® Indie Developer Challenge is a great opportunity to celebrate the 40th anniversary of an iconic game franchise,” said Jim Wilson, CEO of Atari. “We are enthusiastic about working with the independent developer community to evolve Pong® through a wide variety of creative concepts and gameplay experiences that will further engage our Atari fan base and introduce new consumers to this pioneering video game franchise.”

For full details regarding the contest and rules, including how to submit, eligibility, timing of submissions and prizes, please visit: www.atari.com/pongdeveloperchallenge

Assets

For more information about Atari games and the latest news:
- Visit our website: www.atari.com
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- Subscribe to our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/atari

About ATARI, SA
Atari (www.atari.com) is a multi-platform, global interactive entertainment and licensing company. The original innovator of video gaming, founded in 1972, Atari owns and/or manages a portfolio of more than 200 games and franchises, including world renowned brands like Asteroids®, Centipede®, Missile Command®, Pong®, Test Drive®, Backyard Sports®, Deer Hunter®, Ghostbusters®, and Rollercoaster Tycoon®. Atari capitalizes on these powerful properties by delivering compelling games online (via web browsers, Facebook® and digital download), on smartphones and tablets and other connected devices. The Company also develops and distributes interactive entertainment for video game consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony. As a licensor, Atari extends its brand and franchises into other media, merchandising and publishing categories.

Atari has offices in Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Lyon and London.

© 2012 Atari Interactive, Inc. All rights reserved. Atari word mark and logo are trademarks owned by Atari Interactive, Inc.

[mr.Ugly]

awesome!

http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/Brian...developers.php

[BravadoWaffle]

Originally Posted by mr.Ugly

awesome!

http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/Brian...developers.php

Yea, I was just about to post the same thing. Looked interesting at first, then I read the fine print...

[schplurg]

Originally Posted by mr.Ugly

awesome!

http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/Brian...developers.php

Thanks for the quick heads up. As I read it I thought to myself, "Wow that's bad! I should quote that sentence at TA". Then I'd read something even worse, again and again.

Every dev should read that link if they're considering this contest. If you make a game that is good enough to be considered even a runner-up, you would make much more just publishing it yourself, or finding another publisher. Well, maybe.

[SibaStyle]

schplurg, I think it's worth quoting. This is probably the first area where you thought "Wow that's bad!"

c) All Entries become the sole and exclusive property of Sponsor and will not be acknowledged
or returned. Sponsor shall own all right, title and interest in and to eachEntry, including
without limitation all results and proceeds thereof and all elements or constituent parts of
Entry (including without limitation the Mobile App, the Design Documents, the Video Trailer,
the Playable and all illustrations, logos, mechanicals, renderings, characters, graphics,
designs, layouts or other material therein) and all copyrights and renewals and extensions of
copyrights therein and thereto. Without limitation of the foregoing, each Eligible
Entrantshall and hereby doesabsolutely and irrevocably assign and transfer all of his or her
right, title and interest in his or her Entry toSponsor, and Sponsor shall have the right and may authorize others to use, copy, sublicense, transmit, modify, manipulate, publish,
delete,reproduce, perform, distribute, display and otherwise exploit the Entry (and to create and exploit derivative works thereof) in any manner, including without limitation to embody the Entry,in whole or in part, in apps and other works of any kind or nature created, developed, published or distributed by Sponsor and to and register as a trademark in any country in Sponsor’s name any component of the Entry, without such Eligible Entrant reserving any rights or claims with respect thereto. Sponsor shall have the exclusive right, in perpetuity, throughout the Territory to change, adapt, modify, use, combine with other material and otherwise exploit the Entryin all media now known or hereafter devised and in any manner, in its sole and absolute discretion, without the need for any payment or credit to Entrant

[Foursaken_Media]

Definitely something to think about, but in all fairness, isn't that what they're potentially paying $100,000 for... your game?

Originally Posted by SibaStyle

schplurg, I think it's worth quoting. This is probably the first area where you thought "Wow that's bad!"

c) All Entries become the sole and exclusive property of Sponsor and will not be acknowledged
or returned. Sponsor shall own all right, title and interest in and to eachEntry, including
without limitation all results and proceeds thereof and all elements or constituent parts of
Entry (including without limitation the Mobile App, the Design Documents, the Video Trailer,
the Playable and all illustrations, logos, mechanicals, renderings, characters, graphics,
designs, layouts or other material therein) and all copyrights and renewals and extensions of
copyrights therein and thereto. Without limitation of the foregoing, each Eligible
Entrantshall and hereby doesabsolutely and irrevocably assign and transfer all of his or her
right, title and interest in his or her Entry toSponsor, and Sponsor shall have the right and may authorize others to use, copy, sublicense, transmit, modify, manipulate, publish,
delete,reproduce, perform, distribute, display and otherwise exploit the Entry (and to create and exploit derivative works thereof) in any manner, including without limitation to embody the Entry,in whole or in part, in apps and other works of any kind or nature created, developed, published or distributed by Sponsor and to and register as a trademark in any country in Sponsor’s name any component of the Entry, without such Eligible Entrant reserving any rights or claims with respect thereto. Sponsor shall have the exclusive right, in perpetuity, throughout the Territory to change, adapt, modify, use, combine with other material and otherwise exploit the Entryin all media now known or hereafter devised and in any manner, in its sole and absolute discretion, without the need for any payment or credit to Entrant

[SibaStyle]

Yes, but only $100,000 to the winner. If you submit, you release all ownership of your product. Your 3+ months work could be for nothing. If you don't win, you don't get the $100,000 and you will get nothing from the future sales of your game.

[MikaMobile]

This contest is exploitative to the max. Atari stands to gain a lot more than 100k if they got a quality submission, and risks nothing in the process. They're looking for suckers, plain and simple.

[dib]

I think it's more likely a thin whitewash for the fact they normally sue developers for this exact thing: make a game too similar to some decades-old classic, win an autographed C&D letter!

[DistantJ]

Wow, it sounded good until I read the smallprint and the Gamasutra page. Forget it!!