After months of waiting, the assets that once belonged to shuttered development studio 38 Studios will go up for auction in November, including the IP rights to the Kingdoms of Amalur series.
The liquidation auction will last for just over a day, beginning on November 13 at 9 a.m. Eastern and running until November 14 at 12 p.m. A website has been set up outlining the assets, including technology and intellectual property rights, that will be available to the highest bidder.
While only one game -- Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning -- was ever released, the Amalur franchise was designed to be much more. An MMORPG, known as Project Copernicus, was in the works (see its leaked trailer below), complete with expansive lore. The Amalur rights include the MMO, the rights to create a sequel (something which includes the work already done on Reckoning 2), and the revenue still being generated by Reckoning.
Also up for sale are IP rights and in-house technology belonging to Big Huge Games, the now-defunct game developer that was owned by 38 Studios following a 2009 acquisition. Prior to developing Reckoning, it was responsible for the Rise of Nations PC strategy games and Catan for Xbox Live Arcade.
The 38 Studios saga is a long one. Financial problems prompted the company to lay off its entire staff and file for bankruptcy last year. The situation was complicated by the fact that the state of Rhode Island had loaned the studio $75 million to relocate from Massachusetts. Its collapse resulted in Rhode Island taking control of 38's assets and a lawsuit being filed against the developer by Rhode Island, a case which will go to trial despite attempts to have it dismissed. As if that weren't all enough, WPRI reported this month that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the original loan.
Expect to hear more about 38 Studios' assets following the auction's conclusion in November.
Chris Pereira is a freelance writer who spends his spare time agonizing over the final seasons of The X-Files. Check out what he's saying on Twitter and follow him on IGN.
Source : ign[dot]com
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