38 Studios, Nival Join U.S. Trade Body ESA38 Studios, Nival Join U.S. Trade Body ESA

Author: by Staff

Curt Schilling-founded Kingdoms of Amalur house 38 Studios and King's Bounty: Legions publisher Nival have joined U.S. game industry trade body the Entertainment Software Association, the organization said Monday. The addition of the two studios brings the total number of ESA member companies to 33. "We look forward to working with these companies as we further our mission to fight piracy, protect the First Amendment liberties of video games, and position our industry for future growth," said ESA president and CEO Michael Gallagher in a statement. 38 Studios is headquarted in Providence, Rhode Island, and is currently at work on a fantasy-themed MMORPG, codenamed Copernicus. Its subsidiary studio, Big Huge Games from Baltimore, is developing a fantasy RPG set in the same universe as Copernicus, called Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. 38 Studios was founded in 2006 by former Red Sox star pitcher Curt Schilling. The 200-person Nival has three development studios with a concentration on strategy games. The company was founded in 1996 and is behind games including Blitzkrieg, Silent Storm and Etherlords. Nival will also be publishing and co-developing with KranX the turn-based strategy game King's Bounty: Legions. "We felt it was an important step in our expansion into North America to include joining the ESA," said David D. Christensen, general manager of Nival's North American office. Nival is headquartered in Moscow.