EA Shuts Down Legendary RPG Utvikler BioWare

Image: BioWare

After more than three decades, Electronic Arts announced today the closure of the legendary RPG developer BioWare.

The studio released an official statement on its website, confirming the shutdown, and announced that “early development” on the next Mass Effect project is ending.

For more than 30 years, BioWare has been more than a studio. It has been a home for storytellers, developers, and the players who brought our worlds to life.

Now, after more than three decades of shared adventures, BioWare is closing and early development on the next Mass Effect project is ending.

There is nothing easy about writing those words. Our focus right now is on our incredibly talented team who put their hearts into these games, and supporting one another through this transition.

What generations of BioWare built together is something to celebrate and remember. These games became so much more because you played them, debated your choices, fell in love with the characters, and made these worlds your own.

From all of us at BioWare, thank you for being the most meaningful part of our story.

The Canadian studio was founded in 1995 and is known for multiple highly successful role-playing series. Apart from Mass Effect, this included its work on Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, STAR WARS: Knights of the Old Republic and the Dragon Age series.

Bloomberg reports the studio’s closure is part of EA’s latest cost-cutting measures, which is supposedly eliminating 400 jobs (roughly 50 at BioWare) as part of a plan to save up to $700 million. BioWare’s final game was Dragon Age: The Veilguard, but did not live up to EA’s expectations.

If we hear any other significant developments about BioWare’s closure (or EA’s latest round of layoffs), we’ll provide an update.