RIP BioWare: EA shuts down storied RPG studio after over three decades
Next Mass Effect project canceled as parent company lays off 400.
via Ars TechnicaReported by 7 outlets
Electronic Arts closes BioWare and cancels the next Mass Effect in companywide cuts
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AI summary of the reporting below · Updated · How we work
Electronic Arts is shutting down BioWare after more than 30 years and canceling the next Mass Effect game, the studio announced Wednesday. The closure accompanies broader layoffs across EA affecting approximately 400 workers, or about three percent of its total workforce, according to Bloomberg and Variety. Bloomberg reports that roughly 50 of those eliminated positions were based at BioWare. [1][2][3][6]
The restructuring follows a $55 billion buyout that took EA private under an investor consortium including Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners. Engadget notes the transaction left EA with significant debt, citing a figure of $20 billion, while Wccftech places the debt burden around $18 billion. Beyond shuttering BioWare's Edmonton office, EA is trimming staff at Skate studio Full Circle and pausing The Sims developer Maxis's Project Lotus to fund other efforts. [2][3][5][6]
The decision ends years of commercial turbulence for BioWare following weak sales for Dragon Age: The Veilguard and Anthem, which Engadget notes was shut down earlier this year. EA co-presidents Cam Weber and David Tinson wrote in a staff memo that the publisher will now focus resources on fewer large-scale action-adventure titles, including Marvel's Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi installment, while shifting attention toward annual sports titles and major shooters. [2][7]
Read the original reporting
7 outlets
Read at Ars Technica
EA is shutting down BioWare and cutting around 400 jobs
Skate studio Full Circle will be be reduced to "a more focused, smaller team," while a Sims project has been paused.
via Engadget_hn7CZkQ.png?width=690&quality=85&format=jpg&auto=webp)
BioWare is closing down and Mass Effect 5 is cancelled, months after Saudi Arabia's $55bn EA buyout
After over three decades of iconic RPGs, developer BioWare is closing down and its in-development Mass Effect game is no more. The move comes just months after corporate owner EA was bought out by a group of investment firms for $55 billion.
via Eurogamer
Its official – EA is shutting down BioWare
EA was sold off to a private equity consortium earlier this year, in a deal that has saddled the publisher with billions of dollars worth of debt. Now, the fallout is beginning, with hundreds of layoffs being scheduled. On top of that, beloved RPG studio BioWare is shutting down, cancelling plans for the next Mass … The post Its official – EA is shutting down BioWare first appeared on KitGuru.
via KitGuru
Next Mass Effect game cancelled as EA shuts down BioWare
Update | Following the completion of EA’s buyout, the restructuring has led to the closure of BioWare, the studio behind Mass Effect and Dragon Age games. The team was working on the next Mass Effect game, but it has now been cancelled. Update: EA and BioWare have announced the details to the public.
via Notebookcheck
EA is shutting down BioWare
BioWare, the legendary studio behind RPGs like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is shutting down, the company confirmed in a statement. Alongside the closure, Electronic Arts has chosen not to continue development on the next Mass Effect game that was in the works, according to an announcement sent…
via The Verge
EA Shuts Down BioWare and Cancels Its 50-Person Mass Effect Project, as 350 More Layoffs Follow the $55 Billion Buyout
The day millions of RPG fans dreaded has arrived: Canadian developer BioWare is being shut down by Electronic Arts, as first reported by Bloomberg, and the studio's only in-development project, a new Mass Effect game, has been canceled. It was being developed by a skeleton crew of 50 people, following earlier layoffs that had already fueled skepticism about the game's status.
via Wccftech