Test Drive Unlimited 2 and the V-Rally series developer Eden Games is not happy with the way Atari has been treating it and - in the face of enormous redundancies at the company - have gone on strike today. In the face of layoffs, the French studio has said enough, and are refusing to work. After learning they are to lose 51 of their 80 employees they’ve taken strike action.
Eden issued the following statement:
"Eden Games pays now for Atari mismanagement. For several years we are witnessing multiple leader changes at its head, they did not hesitate to get rich despite financial difficulties. Restructuring plans have been following each others for 10 years at Atari. Each time the recovery project was beautiful and promising, and ended in a failure. We are skeptical about the proposed project. Atari does not play the game of negotiations with employee representatives on the redundancy plan measures. Employee representatives of Eden until now have been extremely collaborative, respecting the very tight deadlines of the redundancy plan."
GI says that they have a four point agenda to go along with the strike:
- Get the attention of Atari CEO Jim Wilson, who has never introduced himself to his employees.
- Have a constructive negotiation on the terms of the layoff plan. They call the current process one-sided.
- Demand that Eden Games employees be compensated the same way as an employee of Atari.
- Know what the future holds after the restructuring plan is complete.
The strike is being described as a "symbolic day strike" and even though it is only a short-term thing, it certainly is drawing some extra attention to the plight of the studio.
Source: RPS
