EA is closing BioWare and cancelling the next Mass Effect as about 400 jobs are cut

Electronic Arts is closing BioWare, the studio behind Mass Effect and Dragon Age, and has ended early development on the next Mass Effect game. BioWare confirmed the closure in a statement on social media on Wednesday, and EA executives announced it in a memo to staff that The Verge published in full.

The closure is part of wider cuts. Bloomberg reports that EA is laying off about 400 people, around 3% of its workforce, including roughly 50 at BioWare, according to GamesIndustry.biz. EA has not confirmed the job numbers itself.

What EA and BioWare said

In the memo, chief studios officer Cam Weber and chief operating officer David Tinson said a small BioWare team had been in early development on Mass Effect. EA decided not to continue that work, they wrote, which means shutting down the studio and its Edmonton workspace. “BioWare is a legendary studio that helped define the role-playing genre, and we do not take this decision lightly,” the executives wrote.

BioWare’s statement listed games from its 30-plus years, including Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Anthem. “Now, after more than three decades of shared adventures, BioWare is closing and early development on the next Mass Effect project is ending,” the studio said. It added that its focus now is on supporting its team.

EA’s other plans

The memo says EA will concentrate on fewer large projects. Work continues on Marvel’s Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi game. EA is also investing in Apex Legends and future Battlefield titles, and Respawn and DICE will work together on an unannounced project, which Bloomberg says is likely a new Star Wars: Battlefront, according to The Verge. EA Sports is developing an open-world American football game called Project Gridiron and is in pre-production on a new Fight Night. EA is pausing a Sims project codenamed Project Lotus to prioritize one called Project Evergreen, and will move to a smaller team for skate.

An EA spokesperson told The Verge there was nothing to share yet on Amazon’s planned Mass Effect TV series.

Context

BioWare, founded in 1995, was acquired by EA in 2007, Polygon notes. Its most recent game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, missed sales expectations. The next Mass Effect was announced in 2020. A consortium of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners took EA private in a $55 billion deal that closed in August. According to Polygon, EA then said it aimed to reduce annual costs by $700 million.