John Riccitiello sets out to identify the engine of growth for Unity Technologies (interview)

John Riccitiello, the former chief executive of Electronic Arts, was named the CEO of game engine maker Unity Technologies on Wednesday. He replaced David Helgason, who co-founded the company in 2004 and built it into one of the key platforms of the era of digital games. Unity’s mission was to “democratize game development,” or create tools that made it easy for smaller, independent developers to make high-quality 3D games that could run across a bunch of platforms.

Much of that mission has been fulfilled, as indie gamemakers are challenging big game publishers for dominance in segments such as mobile and online games. Unity has more than 630,000 developers using its engine to create cross-platform games. That has made it valuable, and it has stirred interest by various parties in acquiring the company. Co-founder Joachim Ante has said Unity isn’t for sale, but the change in leadership has stirred more questions. Riccitiello joined the board some time ago, and now he’ll lead Unity into its next stage of growth.