Electronic Arts has closed BioWare, the role-playing game studio best known for the Mass Effect and Dragon Age series, and development of the next Mass Effect game has stopped. News of the closure emerged on 21 October, and although many observers had seen it coming, it still landed as a shock for fans of the studio's work.
Variety reported the shutdown, and the account was backed by an EA statement and a farewell message from BioWare on social media. According to the report, EA is cutting 3% of its global workforce as part of the move. The decision follows EA's shift to fully private ownership earlier this summer, when Saudi Arabia and private equity investors acquired the company along with all of its studios and properties.
The cancelled Mass Effect project was intended as a follow-up to the original trilogy and had been in development since the early 2020s. Progress slowed considerably after 2024's Dragon Age: The Veilguard fell short of EA's expectations and the studio was heavily downsized. Bloomberg's Jason Schreier reported that only around 50 people were left at BioWare, meaning the team would have needed to hire aggressively to finish such a large sci-fi RPG.
Fans got a measure of reassurance not long afterward. IGN exclusively reported that the live-action Mass Effect television series is still moving forward at Prime Video. Amazon began active development of the show in late 2024, but it has not yet entered production. Few story details are public, though rumors suggest it may bridge the gap between the original trilogy and the game that has now been scrapped. EA continues to own the Mass Effect property despite closing the studio that created it.
Variety's report also carried further comments from EA executives on the publisher's present and future, along with updates on other projects. Marvel's Iron Man, being made at Motive, and Star Wars Jedi 3, from Respawn Entertainment, are both still in the works. More surprising was the news that DICE and Respawn are collaborating on an entirely new project, which is believed to be Star Wars Battlefront 3 after several days of strong rumors from a number of reputable sources.
Former BioWare developers have meanwhile gathered at new studios. Archetype is preparing to release Exodus, an action RPG inspired by Mass Effect, in 2027. Arcanaut recently began work on Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic, with Casey Hudson, the original director of Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect, leading the effort.
The closure adds to the pressure facing developers in what the source describes as an increasingly hostile industry, and there is hope that both new studios and the recently laid-off BioWare staff can find success.
