BioWare shuts down after EA layoffs tied to sale
The leaked in-engine trailer shows a new customizable N7 agent and Liara T'Soni, while fans rally behind a petition with more than 45,000 signatures.
- On Wednesday, Electronic Arts announced the closure of BioWare and cancellation of Mass Effect 5, eliminating around 50 positions at the studio as part of a broader restructuring affecting 400 employees across EA.
- The closure follows EA's $55bn acquisition and disappointing 2024 sales performance of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, prompting the publisher to cut costs across its portfolio. Mass Effect 5 had been in early development with a small team.
- BioWare cinematic supervisor Tony de Waal revealed the project aimed for "a level of autonomy and choice that no other game has been able to match," drawing inspiration from Baldur's Gate 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 by Larian and CD Projekt.
- Writer Catherynne M. Valente defended the team's work, stating, "We were working on a great game," as the layoffs represent 3% of EA's total staff across the company.
- BioWare's Austin studio remains open to support other EA projects, though the Edmonton closure signals a strategic shift as the company reduces focus on developing deep role-playing games beyond sports and shooter franchises.
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129 Articles
Prepare to explore Mass Effect: Universe, the cancelled project that was going to introduce a new spy-type experiment in space. Could not have been: an alien spy-type epic that could not have been: since the closing of BioWare and the cancellation of Mass Effect, many people involved in the project spoke about what was planned.
The legendary video game developer studio Bioware is history. Established in 1995, the company based in Edmonton, Canada, announced the US gaming manufacturer Electronic Arts, who took over the studio about 20 years ago. Bioware is known for popular role-playing roles such as "Dragon Age", "Mass Effect", "Baldur's Gate", or "Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic".
The respected game studio became a political breeding ground. EA's decision is the latest example of "get woke, go broke".
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