BioWare is shutting down and Mass Effect is cancelled
Another studio bites the dust
EA has officially closed down BioWare, the legendary studio behind RPG hits like Mass Effect, Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and Dragon Age. This comes amid layoffs at EA following its $55 billion private equity buyout, which cost 400 people their jobs. 50 of these jobs were at BioWare.
After releasing its original Mass Effect trilogy and Dragon Age: Inquisition, BioWare has had a troubled decade. Both Anthem and Dragon Age: The Veilguard underperformed. While fans welcomed Mass Effect’s recently released Legendary Edition Remaster, EA has chosen to cancel BioWare’s new Mass Effect game, which was in early production.
While EA has cancelled its new Mass Effect game, Amazon MGM Studios still plans to produce a live-action Mass Effect series for Amazon Prime. It is currently unknown what EA plans to do with BioWare’s IP, as it appears to have no plans to utilise it. EA could sell the IP to ease its debt burden, as its private equity acquisition has left the company with $20 billion in debt. That said, EA is a graveyard of dormant gaming IP, and it hasn’t sold its gaming IP before. Even so, the company’s huge debt burden may force it to reconsider this stance.
— BioWare (@bioware) October 21, 2026
As it was, BioWare was a shell of its former self. The company reportedly had 50 employees when it was closed. This small team were working on the next Mass Effect game, and likely hoped to scale up as the project entered full development. Sadly, this wasn’t to be. EA has killed another beloved gaming studio, and the problems that caused the closure likely stemmed from EA itself.
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