The wait is over. The finalists for Atari’s Pong Indie Developer Challenge has been announced and the 7 developers revealed today will win three-year, revenue-share publishing agreements and cash prizes, which will be awarded based on final ranking, with first place taking home a grand prize of $50,000.
All finalists are featured on Atari’s Developer Spotlight, with information about each developer and their submission. Fans can visit the Developer Spotlight and vote for their favorite new Pong concept at www.atari.com/pongdevchallenge/finalists.Games from the finalists will be published as an iOS release planned for later this year through which developers will benefit from a revenue sharing agreement with Atari.
Each of the new Pong interpretations submitted by finalists will see a commercial release, but not all can win top honors. The ultimate winner of the contest will be selected in part by a celebrity judging panel made up of Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, Dave Castelnuovo, David Whatley, and Mike Schramm. Each judge’s vote will be weighed against the community’s votes in determining the finalist ranking.
In addition to revenue-share agreements, the top three submissions will take home cash prizes of $50,000 for 1st place, $37,500 for 2nd place, and $15,000 for 3rd place, while the remaining finalists will each win $5,000.
Today’s announcement comes as Atari prepares to celebrate its 40th anniversary tomorrow, June 27, 2012. Alongside moving into the next phase of the Pong Indie Developer Challenge, the company is celebrating its 40 years of gaming with special promotions and giveaways. To keep up to date on all the anniversary activities, stay tuned to Atari’s official Facebook page.
