No new "Mass Effect": EA closes cult studio Bioware
Just a few months after Electronic Arts was taken private, the corporation is closing the former industry pioneer Bioware. Several financial failures in the past had put the studio in a precarious position.
Bioware is no more: The legendary game studio has announced its closure in a brief blog post. This also means that work on a new «Mass Effect» game has been discontinued.
The news of the closure is likely to hit many fans hard: Since its founding in 1995, Bioware has been one of the most influential studios in the role-playing game industry. It developed beloved games and series such as «Baldur’s Gate», «Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic», «Dragon Age», and «Mass Effect». The Canadian studio has been part of Electronic Arts (EA) since 2007.
Source: Bioware
Bioware shaped the industry with its companion systems, branching dialogues, and moral choices that steer the course of the plot. This influence is still palpable today in role-playing games from studios like CD Projekt Red («The Witcher» series and «Cyberpunk 2077») and Larian («Baldur’s Gate 3»).
Bioware had been struggling for some time
The final closure comes as a surprise, but Bioware had been struggling with serious problems for a long time. «Mass Effect Andromeda» was released in 2017 and was not well received by fans. This was followed in 2019 by the live-service disaster «Anthem», which also failed to reach the desired player numbers. Consequently, many hopes were pinned on «Dragon Age: The Veilguard», which was released in 2024 and also failed to meet high expectations.
Source: Bioware
In addition, several high-ranking creative leaders, including founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, left the studio over the past 14 years. In 2025, EA reduced Bioware to a small core team working on the new «Mass Effect» title.
EA focuses on its cash cows
EA itself was taken private in August 2026 as part of a 55 billion US dollar deal and is now owned by an investor consortium, in which the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund PIF holds the largest share at more than 93 percent. Analysts expected the takeover to be accompanied by severe financial cuts. There was talk of annual savings of 700 million US dollars.
Against this backdrop, the end of Bioware fits into the company's extensive austerity measures. According to «Bloomberg», EA is currently planning to lay off 400 employees, 50 of whom are at Bioware. The decision to close the studio likely took into account that the next «Mass Effect» was still in an early development phase six years after its announcement.
In a message to the staff, management stated that in addition to «Mass Effect», other projects are being discontinued, including a planned game in the «The Sims» universe. Instead, EA intends to focus on the development of financially successful sports game series, «Apex Legends», as well as action-adventures like the planned «Star Wars Jedi» and «Iron Man» games. «Battlefield» and «Star Wars: Battlefront» will also continue.
Feels just as comfortable in front of a gaming PC as she does in a hammock in the garden. Likes the Roman Empire, container ships and science fiction books. Focuses mostly on unearthing news stories about IT and smart products.
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