Atari Sells Driver IP to Ubisoft for $24 Million

[fitbabits]

Next Generation (http://www.next-gen.biz) is reporting that Atari, in an effort to regain it's footing in the videogame market, has sold the technology and intellectual property (IP) rights of the once-mighty Driver franchise to Ubisoft.

You can read the story here (http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3411&Itemid=2).

Atari has sold Ubisoft the IP and technology rights to the Driver franchise for a cool $24 million. (Driv3r pictured.)

The deal will also grant Ubisoft “most of the assets” and all of the personnel of Driver developer Reflections Interactive.

Atari said that the move is part of its restructuring plan, which was initiated in the midst of a string of disappointing financial results. The company will retain the most recent Driver: Parallel Lines until the end of the year, and will keep the sell-off rights for the rest of the franchise for a three month period.
This is a good move for Atari, but I wonder what Ubisoft have up their sleeves for a franchise that has become somewhat of a poisoned chalice. Having said that, Parallel Lines was a fair attempt at a return to the original Driver roots.

[Ernst_Jager]

Haven't liked any of the Driver games.

[bKangy]

Isn't this just like buying a big pile of mud?

[Dag-Sabot]

Atari: Dude, here you can have it, we can't do anything with it.

Ubi: Sweet! Does it come with a shovel?

[absolut taco]

Ubisoft are on a roll. They could revive the Driver franchise. The first one was great. Anyone wanna bet against the next one being named driVer?

[fitbabits]

Ubisoft are on a roll. They could revive the Driver franchise. The first one was great. Anyone wanna bet against the next one being named driVer?
Aside from the fact that the third game in the franchise sucked baws, the scorn Atari received for the name itself, Driv3r, is probably enough to ensure that driVer will never see the light of day! Thankfully.

[Dr.Finger]

When was Driver a 'once mighty franchise"? But I could see Ubisoft trying to use this as a rival to EA's Need For Speed games.

[Deadend]

Driver was cool, back when it was the first game I played with a free roaming city with 3d graphics.

Also, I doubt the next game would be Driver V, as Ubisoft is shying away from numbers in titles, as are most companies, as calling a game 2 or 3 or 5 may put off newcomers who never played the older games.

I am not really sure why they bought the franchise however, as Reflections has not made a game that I enjoyed since Driver 1.

The new title will be...

Tom Clancey's: Undercover Ops: Driver: Chicago

[Zanzibar]

The first Driver was the shit back in the day.

[thecrazyd]

Aside from the fact that the third game in the franchise sucked baws, the scorn Atari received for the name itself, Driv3r, is probably enough to ensure that driVer will never see the light of day! Thankfully.
Wasn't Driver 4 called DrIVer?

[Reanimated]

The original Driver on PS1 was an AWESOME game, so here's hoping they can recapture the greatness of the original title.

[Sensei-X]

There's a sucker born every minute, the time was right for Atari to find theirs.

[thecrazyd]

The original Driver on PS1 was an AWESOME game, so here's hoping they can recapture the greatness of the original title.
I prefer to call it Dr1ver.

[fitbabits]

Wasn't Driver 4 called DrIVer?
I thought Parallel Lines was number four.

[tombofsoldier]

If they try to get back to the "action movie in a game" thing they might get a good game. While Driver was orignally about only the driving portion of action movies, if they managed to combine it with a Max Payne style shooter that might be damned cool.

[Kamalot]

While I think any price is too much for the damn series, Ubisoft has a great track record for turning around series.

[jeffbax]

There's a sucker born every minute, the time was right for Atari to find theirs.
Ubisoft has been on a roll for the past few years, I have a lot of faith in them doing something really awesome with Driver.

[captainspankypants]

They never should have taken the driver out of the car and given him a gun. The first one was the only really good one in the series (assuming you could get past the super-hard initial driving test). They need to stop copying GTA and focus on the driving again. I don't mean just scale back the on-foot parts, I mean dump them entirely.

[thecrazyd]

I thought Parallel Lines was number four.
Yeah, but I thought the official name was DrIVer: Parallel Lines or something.

[Dag-Sabot]

Yeah, but I thought the official name was DrIVer: Parallel Lines or something.
the next one will be called :Driver

[icronic]

Ubisoft has been putting out some great stuff lately, so this could be very very good news for the franchise. Keep the physics, bring back the movie maker (my god, that alone made Driv3r worth playing), fix the god aweful on foot controls and we may actually have somethign worth playing again.

[Xerxes]

Ubi could bring it back and make it into something. To spend 24 million somebody there has got a plan I reckon.

I personally would revamp the series. Give it the main character a Clive Owen(BMW films), Jason Statham(Transporter) quality, driver wise and some nice ass cars to do whatever you doing when you driving.

[Deadend]

Ohh, Xerexes is right on... I don't want to play Driver, I want to play Transporter!

[Xerxes]

lol... I don't know if I said that exactly but I mean the driver should have more going for him and those are two drivers I could think of that would offer something new to the driver series...

[HALO 32]

Yeah, but I thought the official name was DrIVer: Parallel Lines or something.

nope just Driver: Parallel Lines

and i just baught a collector's edition last month for $20 new (because of the Atari price drop) and so far i find it to be worth it