A sequel to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning was in "pre-production" before developer Big Huge Games was effectively shut down late last week due to parent company 38 Studios' financial struggles. As expected of a sequel, it would have built upon the base established by the first game. Improvements were sought in graphics, more branching quests, and no loading screens.

While the collapse of 38 Studios has received much more mainstream attention due to its use of tax dollars, Reckoning didn't touch any of that money, a former employee explained. "Reckoning was developed with EA publishing money, NOT Rhode Island tax dollars," a source told Joystiq. "It had nothing to do with the $50 million dollars from RI. That money went directly to the MMO project."

Electronic Arts was approached about the sequel, but apparently declined to pursue it on the basis of "executive politics." 38 Studios was shopping the title, and was in "advanced talks" with a publisher before the company's collapse. Schilling recently blamed Rhode Island for scaring off potential investors in an Amalur sequel.

Because the Amalur IP, tech, and code will likely be owned by the state of Rhode Island after the dust settles, the rights will need to be repurchased for any further pursuit of a sequel. However, according to Joystiq, "the state's asking price to release assets is too high." As the controversy over Schilling's handling of 38 Studios continues to brew, it seems unlikely that Reckoning 2 will ever see the light of day.