Amalur IP up for sale soon

More than a year after 38 Studios collapsed, the defunct game company's most prized assets will go up for sale, Rhode Island news hub WPRI reports.

The free-to-play massively multiplayer online game Project Copernicus and other intellectual property will go on sale at an online auction "soon," 38 Studios' court-appointed lawyer Richard Land said.

"The process is taking longer than we anticipated for a variety of reasons including the complexity of the game itself," Land told WPRI. "We have engaged an auctioneer and they are developing an Internet marketplace--or website--to market the game."

This website is expected to launch later this month.

Land also noted that in addition to the auction, "other interested parties" for the IP have come forward. These were not named, nor was an estimation of how much the assets would sell for.

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said in May 2012 that the Amalur IP is worth around $20 million.

On top of the Project Copernicus assets, Land said there are "other games" that 38 Studios took over when it acquired Big Huge Games in 2009 that could be sold at auction. In addition, Land pointed out that Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning "continues to sell," and a buyer may come forward to purchase the rights to release a sequel.

Two auctions last year liquidated office equipment from 38 Studios in Providence, Rhode Island, and the company's office in Timonium, Maryland, netting less than $1 million, WPRI said.

The United States Securities & Exchange Commission has launched an investigation into the controversial $75 million loan that brought 38 Studios to Rhode Island in 2010.