BioWare Shuts Down as EA Narrows Game Slate
Electronic Arts is shutting down BioWare and cutting about 400 jobs. Early development on the next Mass Effect game is canceled.
- 3% of EA's workforce is being laid off, about 400 people.
- 50 or so of those workers were at BioWare.
- $20 billion in debt came with EA's move to private ownership.
- Skate studio Full Circle shrinks; Maxis pauses Sims spinoff Project Lotus.
Why it matters: BioWare ran for more than 30 years and made Baldur's Gate, Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age and Mass Effect. EA bought it in 2007.
- Anthem and Dragon Age: The Veilguard missed sales expectations before the closure.
- EA plans to focus on sports, Apex Legends, Battlefield and fewer large projects.
How 16 sources split on this story
Where they split: Coverage differs on why BioWare failed: EA's debt-driven shift toward live-service revenue, or player backlash to Dragon Age: The Veilguard's political and social themes.
Center coverage, 9 sources: The center sees a debt-laden EA restructuring after BioWare's recent commercial misses.
Left coverage, 4 sources: The left sees a beloved creative studio sacrificed by new private-equity and Saudi owners chasing microtransaction revenue.
Right coverage, 3 sources: The right sees an iconic studio's decline, with fans blaming Dragon Age: The Veilguard's political themes, amid a California company's mass layoffs.
What’s next: EA says more details on new projects, including a Fight Night revival, will come in months.
- Respawn and Dice are building a new shooter, which Variety's sources say is Star Wars: Battlefront 3.
- What will happen to the Mass Effect and Dragon Age franchises?
- How many laid-off workers will find other roles within EA?
