Reckoning dev lays off entire staff - Report

i thought kingdom of amalur was a good game it was big, it was long and it's combat system was better than skyrim

I don't get it, 3 million copies would be 1000 peoples for one year with salaries at 100K$ - I doubt they paid that much. I got an impression someone left with a big stack of money in their pockets, just because they could. I hope the matter will be investigated.

They overcooked a turkey, then fired the kitchenware. I sincerely hope the governor, taxpayers and now out-of-work staffers can find some kind of justice from these toxic decisions.

It's like pandemic studios all over again :(

Such a talented team. This is a board room failure.

Never good to hear

putting all the resources into the The Kingdoms of Amalur MMO was a fail. Who the hell made the decision that they'd roll it all out instead of just putting out the small rpg first to see how it went without putting all the eggs in the MMO basket!?

Shame that all of them are out of a job. :(

depress!

Regardless if one liked the game or not it is still sad to see a new company who took a chance on a brand new IP fail. With all of the 3s 4s 5s and 6s we see tacked onto our games and all of the remakes coming out it really is sad to see new talent die. Also when did getting 1.3 million copies become a failure? Man money really has skewed how we view success now. Anyway good luck to all the 38 studio workers.

I havn't played this game, but I want too. It looks good. Sad day for 38 Studios. Hopefully they can find a way to come back.

btw I think the "politicians" and the big bosses got off rich and fat, as usual, hope they save up that 30 silver because they sure gonna need it soon.

and yah sure the governor was "shocked" *rolls eyes*

hmm maybe they should have started small .....

I mean I don't know...

at least they have their life and that's whats important, everything will be alright in the end.

This developers are losing their jobs and right now some people are buying this game used.

Didn't like the game at all. It looked to me like some offline mediocre MMO. Sad story though :/

3 million copies to break even....crazy numbers.

The next gen of systems is doomed as costs rise...

379 employees for a new company first game....crazy

Time to move from Rhode island.

That's just saddening.

Game wasn't for me...talented workers though, definitely give them that for first out of the gates game release. Hate they have to suffer from it. I think they will get absorbed into other companies though...hopefully..as their work can and should be considered high value and development.

If they would have made a patch to fix the game before rushing out new DLC I might still be playing the game along with others. So much went wrong here its a shame because the people who actually made the game are the ones who did things right and they got screwed by the higher ups. Schilling is such a bitch. The sad thing is other then maybe a hurt ego he escapes unscathed.

Holly molly! this is sad very sad for the game developers...now who's gonna update the bug and fixes we reported??

Oh man i really enjoyed the game :) and is sad to see this news.

That sucks.

Sad story

The game did not fail. You failed gov Chafee you failed and so did Schilling.

what a joke...

lesson, dont make something you cant afford and if you do..pay the friggin workers and if you cant, go to prison.

I think workers of the game industry should call for a new way of paying them. half up front and half when its over. A game developer makes what $45'000-$80'000 a year or something? its not as much as you think. They needed to come up with around 18 million to pay 300 workers, $60 x 1.2 million copies sold is $72million , they SHOULD of been paid. This is grose.

wow this is fucking sad.

This sucks, but it's a great example of why the government should have no business investing other people's money into things that they have no clue about.

Why couldn't the terms of the loan be re-worked to save the company? I'm sure the citizens of Maine would've preferred that to more people on unemployment.

KoA:R was far more arcadey than I had hoped, so I was quite disappointed. Just wasn't my cup of tea. Still, how do you sell 1.2-million copies of your first game in the first 90-days and go belly up? You hire talent like Salvatore and McFarlane and spit out a simplistic, button-mashing, half-hearted facsimile of an RPG, I guess.

Unfortunate. Hopefully the folks laid off can bounce back and find work quickly and sure they will. What this means for the world of Amalur, it seems no ones for certain. It is really scary how the game studios are here one minute and gone the next. Harsh business.

wow, what a shame. that was such a good game and you can tell that studio had something special on their hands.

Once again I'd say that relocation loan killed them off... Why the hell did they take it and where did the money go... If they'd stayed where they were and made the game they'd probably still be in business.

Must be some really shitty people in high up places, all staff layed off and no one payed so they could pay off a tiny part of the loan... Lame.

Best of luck to everyone who lost their jobs.

I feel like they'd just make more money if the games weren't $60. I mean...if it was $30 or even $40, I (and I'm sure many others) would probably never buy a used game again. 100 x $40 > 50 x $60...

amalur its good game

I don't get it...the game didn't do amazing, but I thought it did relatively well...tons of games do way worse and their companies stay in business...

Too bad ... Not that I'm a fan, but it's a sad thing that a good game like that gets such a bad rep.

That's unfortunate news - my thoughts go out to the former employees. I thought the game was pretty fun, just tough timing with so many people experiencing rpg fatigue after Skyrim.

On a side note, it's sad to see a new IP manage to sell over a million copies and still not be profitable. Sounds a bit like mismanagement.

If 38 Studios had just patched the level cap, I would have purchased the latest DLC. As it is, you reach the level cap before the game finishes. Becomes pointless to play a RPG when the XPs stop.

leave it to a jock to run a video game company and this is what you get.

but seriously, too bad for the workers, and despite what the legion of trolls say, i thought the game was super fun.

Tell ya who I really feel sorry for... the taxpayers of RI.

I hear Schilling got his 30 mil back though.

I find it inconceivable that the state and the company couldn't have worked something out to keep them afloat until the money started coming in. It really seems like there was a generous helping of incompetence in the leadership on all sides here. Considering it's Rhode Island I wouldn't be surprised if political corruption wasn't involved somehow. I want to hear details from the execs who left.

If you're looking for background on this sad story, you can view the summary here: http://l.gamespot.com/JIrXqy

You can also follow Rhode Island reporter Ted Nesi on Twitter @tednesi , who has been the primary source of information on this developing story for the rest of the media.

Wow, laid everyone off via email...that is a new low.

That was certainly a twist of fate.