Ex-SOE director John Hayase to head Atari studios

Ex-Sony Online Entertainment director of development John Hayase, has taken a position at Atari as the new senior vice president of product development.

The position puts him directly in charge of studios such as Cryptic and Eden, as well as all studios carrying the Atari moniker.

"John joins Atari during an essential growth period in which we continue to transition our business toward the online space while maintaining a focus on retail," said Atari chief executive Jeff Lapin.

"His strong background leading development teams to produce free-to-play MMOs, digital and retail console products with some of the industry's most respected publishers, will serve Atari well as we move forward."

During his stint at SOE, Hayase oversaw development of titles such as EverQuest, Free Realms and other online offerings.

Hayase was also previously at EA, where he was: executive producer and general manager at EA China; executive producer of Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 06 and 07; senior development director of Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 2003, 2004 and 2005; etc.

He was also an aerospace engineer at Boeing.

Thanks, GI.biz.