38 Studios is to relocate from Massachusetts to Rhode Island after officials in Providence agreed to provide the developer with $75 million in a loan guarantee.
Founded in 2006 by former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, 38 Studios’ first title is the recently announced Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning. A single player fantasy RPG, it’s due to be published by EA for PC and consoles in 2011, and is being developed under the leadership of Ken Rolston, lead designer on Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.
Earlier this week the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp. voted eight to one to grant 38 Studios the $75 million loan, according to The Boston Globe. It hopes to turn the state into a hub for game development, and 38 Studios has said it could bring 450 jobs to Rhode Island by the end of 2012.
“I’ve invested a significant amount of my life’s earnings in 38 Studios and I will protect the loan guarantee that’s been given by the state with the same passion and interest that I’m protecting my own investment in this company,” said Schilling. “Our paths are very much aligned.’’
However, the decision to grant the $75 million loan to 38 Studios has drawn criticism from some politicians in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Massachusetts independent candidate Tim Cahill said: "I think I would not have done what Rhode Island did. I don't think as a matter of policy it's a good idea to give tax credits to individual companies betting on their success… I think the governor has practiced that too much and I think the legislature goes too far in giving tax credits to keep companies here instead of giving tax breaks across the board or lowering the cost of doing business.”
Meanwhile, former Republican US senator Lincoln Chafee, an independent candidate in Rhode Island, took issue with his state’s potentially expensive gamble. "Senator Chafee respects Curt Schilling's achievements as a professional athlete and his support of charitable causes. At the end of the day, however, his first concern is to protect the interest of Rhode Island taxpayers, on whose shoulders the burden of a 75 million dollar loan default would ultimately fall," his campaign said.
The CEO of Massachusetts-based Demiurge Studios also penned a letter to Schilling asking him to reconsider his decision to move for the sake of the Boston game community.