With BioWare Dead, EA Lays Out Its ‘Next Chapter,’ And It’s Pretty Much As Predicted: Guns And Football Are Fine, And Everything Else Is Under The Microscope

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Electronic Arts says its next chapter will concentrate investment on fewer, larger projects, including Battlefield, Apex Legends, EA Sports FC and a new football game. The company also said it is closing BioWare and its Edmonton workspace, stopping the studio’s early Mass Effect development, pausing Project Lotus and restructuring the Skate team.

Electronic Arts says it will focus on fewer, larger projects, while confirming it is closing BioWare and its Edmonton workspace and will not continue the studio’s early Mass Effect development. The company’s plans keep major sports and shooter franchises in focus while pausing or restructuring other projects, signaling a narrower development slate across EA.

In a statement outlining what it called “EA’s next chapter,” the company said it would concentrate on its biggest franchises and do fewer things with fewer people. For shooters, EA cited Battlefield and Apex Legends, and said Respawn and DICE would collaborate on a future project. The statement did not provide a release date or describe that project’s format.

EA said Marvel’s Iron Man and a third Star Wars Jedi game remain in development, while it plans fewer simultaneous large-scale action-adventure projects. In sports, the company reaffirmed its commitment to EA Sports FC, named a new American football game, “Project Gridiron,” and said Fight Night is returning. It did not give dates or further details for those games.

In its lifestyle portfolio, EA said The Sims will continue, but “Project Lotus” has been paused. The company also said the Skate development team is being cut as it seeks what it described as a healthier, more sustainable business. EA’s statement characterized some changes as difficult for affected teams, but did not set out the full staffing impact in the supplied material.

A Smaller Slate Changes EA’s Priorities

The plans point to a company directing more attention toward established, large-scale franchises and reducing the number of projects it pursues at once. For players, that leaves several recognizable series moving forward, but also means that projects outside those priorities could face pauses, reductions or cancellation. EA has not published a complete list of affected games or teams.

The BioWare decision is especially consequential for the studio’s staff and for players awaiting its next role-playing game. EA said early Mass Effect development will not proceed and confirmed the studio’s closure. The statement does not establish what will happen to the franchise beyond that early work, or whether another team will take it on.

BioWare’s Closure and EA’s Reorganization

EA’s statement follows BioWare’s loss of its studio identity and Edmonton workspace. The company described BioWare as a studio that helped define the role-playing genre, while saying a small team had been working on early Mass Effect development before the decision to stop that work.

The PC Gamer report says Bloomberg had reported that around 400 EA employees were laid off. EA’s statement, as quoted in the report, does not give a headcount or explicitly confirm that figure. The report also places EA’s plans amid a recent acquisition and debt burden, but those details should not be confused with the company’s stated reasons for each individual project decision.

Former BioWare lead writer Patrick Weekes had previously predicted that “guns and football” games would fare better under EA’s changed ownership. That was a former employee’s assessment, not a description EA used to explain its current plans.

“BioWare is a legendary studio that helped define the role-playing genre, and we do not take this decision lightly.”

— Electronic Arts, in its statement about BioWare

Staffing and Game Timelines Remain Unclear

EA has not publicly detailed the full number of workers affected by the changes in the statement described by PC Gamer. The report cites Bloomberg’s figure of about 400 layoffs, but the company’s announcement does not confirm that number or specify how the cuts are distributed among studios.

The statement also leaves key project questions unanswered: it provides no release windows for Project Gridiron, Fight Night or the next Star Wars Jedi game, and offers no further information on the future of Mass Effect after the early development work was stopped. EA has not explained when, or whether, Project Lotus could resume.

PC Gamer reports that EA’s statement was attributed to Cam and David, whom the outlet identifies as likely being Cam Weber and David Tinson. EA confirmed to the outlet that CEO Andrew Wilson remains chief executive; the supplied report offers no explanation for his absence from the statement’s attribution.

EA’s Next Releases and Staffing Details

EA’s next public updates will need to clarify the timing and scope of the projects it has retained, particularly the unnamed Respawn-DICE collaboration and Project Gridiron. The company has not provided a schedule for those announcements in the material available.

For now, the confirmed direction is a smaller slate centered on major franchises, alongside BioWare’s closure and changes to other teams. Further information from EA about employee impacts, project ownership and release plans would show how that strategy will be applied across its studios.

Key Questions

Is BioWare closing?

Yes. EA said it is closing BioWare and its Edmonton workspace as part of the decision to stop the studio’s early Mass Effect development.

Is the next Mass Effect canceled?

EA said it will not move forward with the early-development work being done by a small BioWare team. The statement does not clarify the franchise’s longer-term future or whether another team could develop a Mass Effect game.

Which games did EA say are still moving forward?

EA said Marvel’s Iron Man and a third Star Wars Jedi game remain in development. It also reaffirmed its focus on EA Sports FC, named Project Gridiron and said Fight Night is returning, without providing release dates.

How many EA employees are affected?

The supplied EA statement does not give a total. PC Gamer cites a Bloomberg report of around 400 layoffs, but EA did not explicitly confirm that figure in the statement described by the report.

What is happening to The Sims and Project Lotus?

EA said The Sims will continue, while Project Lotus has been paused. The company did not say whether or when the paused project might resume.

Source: fediverse