Today is a bleak day for the gaming community, especially for old-school RPG fans. EA has officially announced that it is shutting down the legendary BioWare studio, as well as canceling the upcoming Mass Effect title. On top of that, sources say EA is cutting around 400 jobs, making this another major layoff case in the gaming industry.
BioWare to Shut Down and End Development on the Next Mass Effect, EA Confirms
Through its social media channels, BioWare, the studio known for several critically acclaimed RPGs, such as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is shutting down. Furthermore, development on the next Mass Effect title has officially ended.
While this is certainly devastating news for fans of the studio, sources like Bloomberg also claim that EA is cutting 400 jobs, making this another alarming case of layoffs that have been plaguing the gaming industry in recent years.
Right now, several fans are devastated after learning this. Since the recent Dragon Age: The Veilguard didn’t land as the studio expected, receiving less-than-ideal reviews, many were hoping for the next Mass Effect to turn things around. Sadly, it won’t happen anymore.
At the time of writing, the reactions to this news are all over the place. Some fans are mourning the loss of some franchises, with a few hoping for other studios to rescue IPs like Dragon Age or Mass Effect.
“Someone save Dragon Age and Mass Effect, please.“
Some have even tagged Xbox CEO Asha Sharma in hopes that the company will buy the IPs.
Yet, the story is a bit different on Reddit. Some people have a bleaker reaction to all of this, claiming that it was only a matter of time. A few even believe that the “real” BioWare died a long time ago.
“I don’t feel absolutely anything. The BioWare that basically formed my childhood and adolescence is long gone. It is surprising they straight up iced new Mass Effect, though – wonder how far along the dev cycle it was.“
“You can rest in the fact that the real BioWare died long ago.“
Still, the truth is that this is still shocking news for many gamers out there, but especially to those affected by this “restructuring,” as the industry loves to call layoffs nowadays. Many just hope that those affected find new jobs soon and that these franchises get to see the light of day again.
