Zynga founder Mark Pincus has taken back the CEO position at the company after the departure of Don Mattrick, who Pincus himself recruited to replace him back in 2013.
The company said through a statement released before its conference call in May that Mattrick is resigning from his position as CEO and as a member of the board of directors of Zynga.
"I believe the timing is now right for me to leave as CEO and let Mark lead the company into its next chapter given his passion for the founding vision and his ability to couple our mobile progress with Zynga's unique strengths," said Mattrick in a statement.
Analysts are not surprised with Mattrick's departure, with industry insiders believing that Mattrick was already previously looking for an exit, according to RW Baird analyst Colin Sebastian.
Sebastian adds that it is more surprising that Pincus is returning to lead Zynga, as the former CEO looks to rebuild his credibility among both consumers and investors.
The news of Mattrick's departure and Pincus' return sent Zynga's shares tumbling by over 9 percent to a share price of $2.63, continuing the falling price of Zynga shares which has decreased by over 30 percent over the previous year.
It will be a huge challenge for Pincus to regain the lost investor trust in both himself and Zynga, which made a name by popularizing gaming titles that are geared towards general audiences such as FarmVille, which is one of the company's biggest hits.
As opposed to titles that required intense skill or hardcore dedication from enthusiasts, FarmVille simply required players to carry out tasks within a farm such as growing and selling crops, minding livestock and helping out friends.
FarmVille's initial popularity was through Facebook, where the game allowed players to message their friends for help or to invite them to play. However, the major move of most of the target audience to playing games on mobile devices was at a faster pace than Zynga's ability to create new titles, which led to the decrease in the popularity of the company and its games.
Once Mattrick took on the role of CEO in Zynga, the company was in a dire situation with rapidly declining revenue and user base. It did not help that the acquisition of OMGPOP did not translate to success for Zynga.
While Mattrick placed certain improvements in motion, such as the $525 million acquisition of video game technology firm NaturalMotion, the company continued to struggle in its finances with a $266 million loss incurred last year.
Pincus said in his statement that he will look to increase the pace of innovation in action strategy games, in addition to teaming up with partners for a bigger focus on social experiences within its titles.
