EA to close BioWare and cancel next Mass Effect game

Electronic Arts announced Wednesday, October 21, that it is closing BioWare and ending development on the next Mass Effect game. The decision shuts down a studio whose games helped define modern role-playing adventures over more than three decades.

In an announcement to employees published on its website, EA said it would close both the studio and its Edmonton workspace. The publisher said a small BioWare team had been working on the Mass Effect project, which remained in early development when the decision was made.

BioWare confirmed the closure in a separate statement, placing its staff at the center of its response. “There is nothing easy about writing those words,” the studio said, adding that its immediate focus was supporting its developers through the transition.

Founded in 1995 and acquired by EA in 2007, BioWare built a reputation for character-driven role-playing games. Its catalog stretches from Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age and Mass Effect, spanning fantasy settings and science-fiction worlds.

The studio’s farewell emphasized the relationship between those games and their audiences. It thanked players for debating decisions, connecting with characters and making its fictional worlds their own—a description of the storytelling approach that distinguished much of BioWare’s work.

The shutdown follows a more difficult period for the developer. The Associated Press described its multiplayer shooter Anthem, released in 2019, as a departure from its single-player storytelling strengths that failed to establish a sustained audience. It also noted mixed receptions for 2017’s Mass Effect: Andromeda and 2024’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

The closure forms part of a wider restructuring at EA rather than an isolated change to one franchise. Reuters, citing Bloomberg’s reporting, said the publisher planned approximately 400 job cuts, including roughly 50 at BioWare. Those figures were attributed to a person familiar with the plans, rather than detailed in BioWare’s own announcement.

EA framed its decisions around concentrating resources on fewer simultaneous large-scale projects. Its employee announcement said Marvel’s Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi game would continue, while the team developing skate. would become smaller. The contrast underscores that the publisher is selectively reducing its development commitments, not withdrawing from action-adventure games altogether.

For Mass Effect players, the immediate consequence is the cancellation of the project intended to deliver the series’ next game. The announcements did not set out a replacement development plan or explain whether another studio might eventually return to the franchise, leaving its longer-term gaming future unresolved.

EA said it would help affected employees explore other opportunities within the company and discuss its direction at a global town hall in November. BioWare’s own message offered no further development roadmap, closing instead with thanks to the players who had sustained its games and communities.