38 Studios Gets Auctioned Off One Stapler at a Time

This morning we saw the start of the liquidation of 38 Studios with the state of Rhode Island auctioning off many of the items left behind in the 38 Studios office. With more than 300 people in attendance, and people lined up around the block, the auction was forced to start two hours later than expected. Everyone in attendance was given a 34-page booklet consisting of all of the items up for auction, ranging from hundreds of computers to 88 wastebaskets.

38 Studios, which was founded by MLB pitcher Curt Schilling and the creators of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning , first ran into trouble back in May of this year when they couldn’t afford a scheduled loan payment to the state of Rhode Island, who had loaned the studio 75 Million dollars in late 2010 as an incentive for 38 Studios to relocate to Rhode Island. 38 Studios, unable to come up with the total amount of the payment, was forced to withold payroll for all employees to ensure they had sufficient funds to make the payment. Six days later, everyone at 38 Studios was laid off, and 38 Studios became the property of the state of Rhode Island.

People were lined up around the block to get inside this morning.

Among the 300+ people in attendance, there were a few former employees of 38 Studios looking for reasonably-priced equipment for their new start-ups. Also attending the auction was Zenimax, owners of id Software and Bethesda Game Studios, who ended up buying 200 computers and 400 monitors.

Items did not go for cheap as people expected though, as most items were purchased for above retail value. A few of the more outrageous things to be purchased during the auction include a $100 Rock Band guitar, a $600 computer monitor that was originally purchased for $275, and a rare collection of 88 waste baskets being sold for $225. All of the money goes back to the state of Rhode Island to try and make up the 75 Million of tax-payer’s money they lent 38 Studios.

If you want to see hundreds of computers lined up like cattle, be sure to check out the gallery below. The images were taken by Joystiq’s Alexander Sliwinski and former 38 Studios lead producer Rich Gallup who attended the event this morning.