Atari Buys RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 Publishing Rights for $7 Million
Atari has bought the RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 publishing rights from Frontier Developments for $7 million.
Atari, which has a long-term RollerCoaster Tycoon licensing agreement with franchise creator Chris Sawyer, said it is now the sole publisher of all major titles within the RollerCoaster Tycoon franchise, including Rollercoaster Tycoon Classic, Rollercoaster Tycoon 2, Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, Rollercoaster Tycoon Deluxe, Rollercoaster Tycoon Joyride, Rollercoaster Tycoon World, Rollercoaster Tycoon Puzzle, and Rollercoaster Tycoon Touch.
The hugely successful Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 was developed by Frontier Developments, the UK studio behind Elite: Dangerous and Zoo Tycoon, and released in 2004. It’s available now on PC, Mac, iOS, and Nintendo Switch, but Atari said it plans to expand digital and physical distribution, and “explore brand and merchandising collaborations as part of a long-term plan to bring the franchise to new heights.”
“As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of Rollercoaster Tycoon with Chris Sawyer, I am really pleased that we can unite this important and successful title in the series with the rest of the franchise,” said Wade Rosen, Chairman and CEO of Atari. ”This is going to create new opportunities for Atari as we continue the great work done by Frontier, and bring benefits to the fans of games across the Rollercoaster Tycoon franchise.”
The sale brings in much-needed cash for Frontier, which has struggled in recent years after a string of games failed to hit sales projections. In November, Frontier issued a trading update following poor launch sales of its real-time strategy game Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin. The studio has also suffered a round of layoffs.
In a trading update issued this week, Frontier said sales of its games since January have been “in-line with expectations”, with Jurassic World Evolution 2 and Planet Zoo leading the charge. The recent console release of Planet Zoo saw “strong player engagement”, with total sales up
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