Infogrames president Phil Harrison made some eyebrow-raising comments last week, claiming that following Alone in the Dark, his company would move away from "huge-budget, single-player games." Speaking to videogaming247, Harrison went into more detail on what he described as not just a shift in direction for Infogrames, but for the entire industry as well.

While suggesting once again that Infogrames will be moving away from single-player console titles, Harrison elaborates that those games will still have a place in the market, but will have to begin integrating connectivity and non-linearity to survive. We'll have to see if there's any truth in these sooth-saying words.

Stopping short of calling Alone in the Dark his troubled (transitioning?) company's "swan song," Infogrames president and Atari legal guardian Phil Harrison has again proposed that the company (meaning Infogrames the parent and Atari the wholly owned US subsidiary) is focused on carving out its place in the budding online gaming business with a stress on social communication. "I don't see that we're going to be making huge-budget, single-player games in the future," Harrison told Gamasutra, adding, "Now, that doesn't mean that we won't have ambition to do really incredible games ... but they won't be one-player, narrative-driven, start-middle-end games."

Will we be hearing the same message if Alone in the Dark manages to answer CEO David Gardner's prayers (to the tune of 2-3 million units sold)? Sounds like it. Harrison has clearly set his sights on taking a "slightly aggressive, leading-edge role" in the online gaming movement where loneliness is the last motif he wants to cultivate and dark days are in the company's past. "We have plenty of titles in our pipeline, and we think [Alone in the Dark] will be an important part of our year, but it's by no means the only part of our year."

The dialog may sound cheesy, but Alone in the Dark looks like it could be good enough (and given our hands-on, maybe even 3 million units good enough) to try when it releases in late June. In the video above, Atari/Infogrames Directeur Général Délégué Phil Harrison speaks to 1Up about being impressed after seeing AitD for the first time and enjoying the narrative structure of the title.

The real highlight in the video is the impressive amount of gameplay footage shown, which gives us a much better idea of what the title will actually be like. We're not sure yet if Alone in the Dark will be "blow your mind" fantastic, but much like The Darkness last summer, it appears well suited in getting some attention from the consoles it'll launch on during a less-than-crowded release time. Don't fret PS3 owners, you should be way too busy with Solid Snake starting June 12 to care about little ol' Edward Carnby.

Infogrames CEO, David Gardner, tells GI.biz that the company may drop its name (which rocks our world) completely for the Atari marquee brand. He wants the company thought of as a "start-up" and the name change to represent the "final mark" of transformation. Directeur Général Délégué Phil Harrison chimes in that the company, as it stands now with a new management team less than a year old, is "absolutely a start-up" -- it's just a start-up with 25 years of history (and some serious financial drama).

Harrison and Gardner had apparently been talking about doing their own company for a long time. Harrison explains that the two had made significant plans and then the Atari opportunity came along. It was a company that had global infrastructure, offices, branding and was exactly the type of company the two were looking for. It'll probably become much easier to think of Atari as a "new" company once it announces some new IPs and gets the "old" company's games out the door, like the oft-delayed Alone in the Dark.

Gametrailers has a video of Phil Harrison's Infogrames/Atari coming out party from earlier this week, depicting the former Sony exec really entrenching himself into the current fixer-upper situation. He quite confidently says to the press in attendance, "The Atari opportunity, is the best opportunity that exists in the industry today to redefine, refocus and re-energize an incredible brand."

This week has seen numerous moments where Infogrames' new CEO David Gardner and Harrison, as the new Directeur Général Délégué, have said all the right things. Giving the appearance that Atari is a salvageable brand is great, but showing some profit is always a good first step.

Okay, maybe not literally (although the imagery does make us giggle), but a "magnet for talent" is certainly the new image Infogrames hopes to project. Now that Phil Harrison has taken his seat as president of Infogrames, CEO David Gardner has been singing the praises of the company's new business model, which is centered around the online market, as well as recognizable talent, and attracting new faces.

According to Gardner, the future of Atari and Infogrames rests in the field of online gaming, a risky new venture for the company that Gardner is optimistic Harrison will be able to assist in. In addition to the new online focus, Gardner hopes that the company can continue to attract talent, and aims for a healthy mix of both industry veterans, and fresh young faces hoping to innovate. They better hope that magnet's got a lot of pull left in it, as Atari's messy history is naturally repellent.

The rumors of a "Phil eye for the Atari guy" are true. Former Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios president Phil Harrison has joined Atari's parent company Infogrames with the title of Directeur Général Délégué (President). Harrison will report directly to Infogrames CEO David Gardner, who plans to announce tomorrow how he's going to turn the beleaguered company around -- and we're guessing Harrison will have a huge role in doing that.

Harrison's fancy French title (which we're sure to use every chance we can) isn't going to protect him from the hard road ahead. The plan is apparently for Harrison and Gardner to turn Atari into "a leading online game company." Despite Gardner's belief that Infogrames has a "strong financial foundation," its going to take a lot of "show us" over the next few years before Atari gets off the D-list. But damn, is getting Harrison on the team a good start.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Imagine if, as the RMS Carpathia was rescuing passengers from the Titanic, the captain started thinking to himself, "You know, this ship isn't so bad. A little spackle here, a little elbow grease here, I could make it work. I'm going to give it a go!" If you can understand that reasoning, you may just be able to explain to us a rumor that soon-to-depart Sony head Phil Harrison will be moving on ... to Atari.

We can't see how this is an upgrade for Harrison (oodles of money it will take to get him there not withstanding), but it would definitely be a smart move for Atari to get a name like Harrison on board. We'll let you know if we hear something more official.

Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios president Phil Harrison has announced his formal resignation from the company, due to go into effect on February 29. Sony officially broke word of his resignation this morning.

Taking his place will be SCEI president and group CEO Kazuo Hirai, who will assume Harrison's duties on top of his own. It's unknown at the moment whether Sony will begin seeking out a replacement for Harrison, or whether Hirai's full-time responsibilities will engulf those of the former Worldwide Studios president.

First joining Sony back in 1992, Phil Harrison helped launch the first Playstation console, and has since played a major role in SCE's business, including presenting Sony's landmark keynote at last year's GDC. In a public statement, Harrison states that he is incredibly grateful to his "Playstation family," and will continue to support the platform and company in the future.