Atari CEO amoung Unity Tech investors

Unity Technologies, the company behind the popular Unity multi-platform development engine, has announced that it has secured a new funding round of USD 5.5 million.

The round was led by Sequoia Capital, a company that has previously invested in Apple, Electronic Arts and Google, but Atari CEO David Gardner was also named as a personal investor, alongside former CEO of VMware Diane Greene. Both Greene and Sequoia partner Roelof Botha will now join the Unity board of directors.

"When I first saw the quality of games which could be produced with the Unity engine in such a short development time and in a web browser, I was blown away." said Gardner. "Pardon the pun, but it is a game changer and the Unity technology can greatly enhance the quality of browser visualization for many content providers.

"Then I met the people behind the technology and that is what turned me from a product fan to a company fan and investor. I believe in the passion and capability of the team, the straightforward business model and long term potential."

And Unity CEO David Helgason added: "We are very pleased with the market recognition and adoption of our products and technology. It is particularly gratifying to see that our offering can take the pain out of development for industry powerhouses such as Electronic Arts as well as individuals and small development studios."

Unity has been used for a number of development projects, including Tiger Woods Online, and has been cited as the most popular platform for iPhone development.

A full interview with Unity founder Nicholas Francis was published on GamesIndustry.biz last month, and is available to read now.