Looking to end their reverse Midas touch (everything they publish seems to veer away from gold these days), Atari today announced that they are hiring a new president and CEO. David Pierce (no, not THAT David Pierce), former executive vice president of Sony Wonder (Sony’s children’s video and home video arm), will be taking the reins of the troubled videogame maker effective immediately.

Pierce has a strong track record in a variety of entertainment industries and may help Atari to become profitable in the coming months (hopefully without selling off any other major franchises). It should be interesting to see how Pierce plans to put Atari back in the black - if he’s of the “old” school of business, we can expect to see major layoffs and downsizing. Hopefully, Pierce also recognizes that hiring a few top-of-the-line creative talents is what Atari really needs.