Microsoft has announced that Phil Harrison, former President of Worldwide  Studios for PlayStation has joined the publisher and all around tech giant’s leadership team. Harrison will be the lead man for the brand in European countries, as well as taking over some  first party studios including Lionhead, Soho  and Rare.

“We are honored to have Phil join a team that boasts a wealth of talent from across the industry,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president at Microsoft Studios. “Phil is one of video gaming’s true visionaries, and his experience overseeing global studios and deep industry relationships make him the ideal person to lead our European efforts. Under his leadership, we look forward to continuing cultivating the best talent and growing our business in the region.”

The bulk of Harrison’s career has been spent at Sony, but he’s been a bit of a job hopper lately, with stops at several smaller game studios and a stint at Atari.”I am excited to be joining the senior team at Microsoft at a pivotal time for our industry,” said Harrison. “I am really impressed with the company’s long-term vision for growing the market for interactive entertainment globally and also with the incredible wealth of talent, technology and resources the company has available to succeed.”

Though Harrison’s new duties have a lot in common with those of the recently announced to be leaving Peter Molyneux, Microsoft assures that Harrison’s hiring and Molyneux’s departure are not related, and add that Molyneux’s role has already been filled. “Phil’s role on the IEB leadership team is completely unrelated to Peter’s departure. Phil will lead Microsoft Studios European organization, but will also influence the broader performance of IEB’s European business. We will continue to rely on our stable of first party developers as we determine if and when the Microsoft Studios Europe Creative Director vacancy should be filled. Peter’s previous role as Lionhead Studio Manager is being filled by Lionhead COO Mark Webley.”

Atari has had an assuredly awful go of things lately.

After reports that majority shareholder Infogrames is bringing in former Sony Computer Entertainment executive Phil Harrison — and he would probably clean house — Atari let consumers know late Thursday that Infogrames has also offered to buy back all outstanding shares of Atari stock for $1.68, taking the company private and avoiding what could be a potentially embarrassing NASDAQ delisting.

In a statement, Atari said they received a “non-binding expression of intent to acquire the outstanding common stock of Atari, Inc. not owned by IESA (Infogrames Entertainment S.A.) and its affiliates.”

“A Special Committee of Atari, Inc.’s Board of Directors intends to undertake, together with its advisors, a thorough evaluation of the proposal,” the company said Thursday.

Atari needs a boost badly, and Harrison may be able to work some magic. The company has had several years of poor and poorly selling games — the abundence of poor games has lead to poor sales for their better games — and recently announced they would halt game production and focus on distributing and marketing their parent company’s titles.

In a move that shocked the video game world, Sony announced this week that Phil Harrison would resign from his post as President of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios. With more than 16 years behind him at Sony, Harrison has been a key figure behind the highly successful PlayStation brand.

“The past 15 years at Sony Computer Entertainment has been the defining journey of my life so far,” said Harrison. “I am grateful to all the PlayStation family for their incredible support, guidance and friendship. It has been a privilege to serve as part of the team and be inspired by them on a daily basis. I am so proud of everything PlayStation has achieved and will continue to support its future in every way I can.”

Kazuo Hirai, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc will take over for the departing Harrison, as well as keeping his additional duties.

“As one of the founding members of SCE, Phil played a key role in the development and growth of the PlayStation business and our industry,” Hirai said. “It is sad to see him departing from SCE, but I wish to express my gratitude for his many invaluable contributions and also wish Phil the very best of luck in his future endeavors.”

Sony Computer Entertainment America would not comment on Harrison’s departure.

No reason was given for Harrison’s departure, but that hasn’t stopped the internet rumor mill from turning. One theory is that Harrison had become frustrated when Sony Japan became unwilling to change their business strategy and adopt a more “casual gamer” approach.

It is also being reported by Gameindustry.biz that Harrison is leaving Sony for a job with the Infogrames American brand, Atari — which is undergoing a major restructuring to try to return to glory.