Atari has announced it has formed a publishing deal with Swedish developer Starbreeze Studios for the upcoming Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena.

The future of the Riddick title looked rocky after its original publisher, Vivendi, merged with Activision and subsequently announced in July that the game's publishing deal had fallen through.

Assault on Dark Athena was originally planned as a straight remake of Escape from Butcher Bay, however today Atari announced the game would include an all-new “full-length campaign” along with the original remake. It has also emerged that the game will include online multiplayer features. Atari, which has itself seen quite a transformation since the arrival of former-EA exec David Gardner and ex-Sony studios boss Phil Harrison, had previously stated that the company will focus much of its energies on online gaming.

“It’s very exciting to have Assault on Dark Athena as part of Atari’s 2009 publishing line-up,” said Harrison. "The first game in the series was a landmark in action gaming and the outstanding team at Starbreeze are creating a feature-packed follow-up which will delight fans and new players alike.”

Assault on Dark Athena, the sixth game from Starbreeze Studios after last year’s The Darkness, is scheduled to launch on 360, PS3 and PC in “Spring 2009”.

Meanwhile, rumours are circulating that the new Ghostbusters game, which was also dropped by Activision Blizzard during its merger, has also been picked up by Atari.