BioWare Reportedly Had a Mass Effect 5 Trailer Ready to Go Before EA Canceled the Game and Shut the Studio Down
EA said the studio’s Edmonton team is closing as it shifts priorities, while about 50 BioWare workers were laid off and the sequel was shelved.
- 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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14 Articles
2-Minute Trailer for the Canceled Mass Effect Universe Leaked
Yesterday, EA announced its plans to close BioWare and to cancel the next Mass Effect game, which appears to be called Mass Effect Universe. And now, a 2-minute trailer has been leaked online. I could not find a way to embed the video. Right now, you can visit Reddit and watch it. I also don’t … Continue reading 2-Minute Trailer for the Canceled Mass Effect Universe Leaked →
BioWare is history. The studio, which has shaped the western RPG genre with Baldur's Gate, Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect and the early Dragon Age parts, is closed by Electronic Arts. The early work ends at the next Mass Effect, about 50 places in Edmonton and a total of 400 at EA fall away. The official obituary sounds dignified – but the net is huge. The woke game "Dragon Age: The Veilguard" now remains the last of the studio – and d…
BioWare's cancelled Mass Effect game would've learned from Baldur's Gate 3 and The Witcher to deliver "a level of autonomy and choice that no other game has"
EA has closed its longtime studio partner BioWare, the iconic development house behind Mass Effect and Dragon Age, impacting around 50 staff who were in pre-production on the next Mass Effect game. In the aftermath of EA's decision, one of those affected has shared a little about the project, claiming it would have featured unprecedented levels of player freedom and choice reactivity.
'I believe we were making something special' — BioWare dev says the now-canceled Mass Effect 5 offered 'a level of autonomy and choice that no other game has been able to match'
BioWare cinematic supervisor Tony de Waal has revealed new details about the now-canceled Mass Effect 5.
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