Atari buys the rights to Wizardry I to V - reissues in sight, but Drecom contests the acquisition
Important news for the preservation of old school RPG. Atari has just announced the acquisition of the full rights to the first five Wizardry games, with the intent of re-releasing them on modern platforms in physical and digital versions. But as hardly was the announcement released, a controversy erupted.
🗡️ What is Wizardry?
For the uninitiated: Wizardry is one of the most important RPG series in video gaming history. The first episode, Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, was released in 1981 on the Apple II and literally invented the first-person dungeon crawler as we know it. It directly inspired Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, and by extension all Japanese JRPGs. The series was developed by Sir-Tech until Wizardry 8 in 2001, when the studio closed. Since then, the rights have floated between several hands.
📜 What Atari is acquiring
According to Atari's official press release, the acquisition covers the complete and exclusive rights. lusive of the first five episodes:
- Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord (1981)
- Wizardry II: The Knight of Diamonds (1982)
- Wizardry III: Legacy of Llylgamyn (1983)
- Wizardry IV: The Return of Werdna (1987)
- Wizardry V: Heart of the Maelstrom (1988)
The acquisition also includes “many other Wizardry-related games, contractual rights, and associated intellectual property.” Atari announces it wants to bring these classics back to the market via physical and digital reissues on new platforms.
⚔️ Drecom c atests the acquisition
A few hours after the announcement, the Japanese company Drecom published an update on X/Twitter. Drecom, which owns the rights to episodes 6 through 8 as well as the globally registered “Wizardry” brands, claims to have not participated in the sale and does not intend to assign its rights in the future. >The situation is therefore complex: Atari seems to have purchased the rights to the codes and contents of episodes 1 to 5 from their original owners, but Drecom retains the registered trademarks of the series on an international scale. In practice, this means that rereleasing these games under the name “Wizardry” might require a deal with Drecom, even though Atari owns the rights to the content it -same.
🎮 Why this is important for retrogaming
Beyond legal issues, this acquisition sends a positive signal for preservation. The first five Wizardry are virtually not legally found on modern platforms today. A remake of Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord by Digital Eclipse had already been lauded in 2024, and this acquisition could pave the way for official re-releases of the originals. Until the situation clears up between Atari and Drecom, fans of old school dungeon crawlers can start to hope.
Sources: Time Extension - GamingOnLinux - Shacknews