How Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning Nearly Bankrupted An Entire State

However the fire still had some embers left, and in November 2012 Schilling was sued by Rhode Island itself for squandering its money and setting the state back a long way on their road to economic recovery. They'd only managed to claw back around $4.5 million, meaning that the biggest fantasy tale the Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning managed to weave was that of the disappearing coin purse.

It was a real shame, because there was no doubting Schilling's good intentions, and the two subsequent DLCs for the game were labours of love. The real issue lied with the fact that the Economic Development Board should have never signed such a huge chunk of money away without a better means of claiming it back in the first place. It wasn’t just a wad of cash they had laying around, but taxpayer money that could have been used to improve the lives of citizens in far more substantial ways. It was simply the wrong move, which ultimately even cost the jobs of those it was designed to help.

Despite its troubled history, Kingdoms of Amalur emerged a fine game, packed with content and a brilliant arcade fighting system that doesn’t feel stale even after hours of playtime. It didn’t set the world on fire like it was aiming to, but it wasn’t a technical failure - and the passion for the project shines through brightly. But it probably wasn't worth nearly sinking Rhode Island for the pleasure.