Infogrames: 'We want to stop losing money'

Infogrames CEO David Gardner is optimistic. Today, the newly appointed executive told Reuters that the Atari parent--which hasn't posted an annual profit since 1999--will see a financial turnaround thanks to its remake of Alone in the Dark.

Set for a June 20 release in Europe and a June 24 ship in North America, Alone in the Dark sees the return of series protagonist Edward Carnby. This time around, he is tasked with getting to the bottom of a series of supernatural phenomena occurring in New York City's Central Park that are tearing the metropolis apart.

Despite Uwe Boll's critically lambasted film version, Gardner believes in the fan base of the Alone in the Dark series, which began in 1992 on the PC. He predicts the latest game will sell 2 to 3 million copies during Infogrames' current fiscal year, which ends March 31, 2009. Developed by Eden Games on the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3, and by Hydravision Entertainment on the PlayStation 2 and Wii, the newest Alone in the Dark is the fifth installment in the survival-horror franchise.

As for his overall strategy for Infogrames, Gardner told Reuters, "We want to stop losing money... This management team's number one goal is to get a business plan together that gets us to a break-even level." The executive didn't have a timetable as to when the France-based firm would become financially solvent.