Report: BioWare Closure Due to EA Choosing Star Wars Battlefront 3 Over Next Mass Effect
Last week, the gaming world was rocked when Electronic Arts announced the closure of once-RPG powerhouse BioWare.
It seems the main reason for that is that EA only wanted to back one multi-hundred-million-dollar sci-fi project, and it was between Mass Effect and a Star Wars title.
At the same time EA announced the closure of BioWare, the publisher also confirmed that a joint venture by DICE (developers behind Battlefront 1 and 2) and Respawn Entertainment (Star Wars Jedi, Apex Legends) is in the cards, and it was reported to be Star Wars Battlefront 3.
EA Bets on Star Wars Battlefront 3 Instead of Mass Effect
Note that before reading on, remember that this is unofficial info, and as such, don’t treat it as such.
According to Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, EA’s executives reviewed the company’s portfolio and found themselves with two sci-fi action games that were each projected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars: the next Mass Effect game (which was already in development), and Star Wars Battlefront 3.
EA execs chose to invest in Star Wars and shut down BioWare as a result. While the next Mass Effect game has been in development for quite some time, Star Wars Battlefront 3 has not even begun development yet, according to the report, but EA executives saw it as a less risky, more predictable bet than a new RPG from BioWare.
EA is also said to be more comfortable with shooters than RPGs, though there are other factors behind the decision as well. BioWare’s last few projects didn’t perform well critically and commercially. Starting in 2017 with Mass Effect: Andromeda, 2019’s live-service flop Anthem, and the studio’s most recent release, the much-maligned Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which was said to have missed sales projections by 50%.
This recent string of flops led to EA gutting BioWare and relocate many of its staff to other units within the organization, with only 50 people left at BioWare when the studio was eventually shut down.
While I love the Mass Effect franchise, it doesn’t take a genius to see how a Star Wars shooter would probably outsell a new entry in a dormant IP. Add in BioWare’s recent string of failures, and it’s understandable why the execs would go the route they did.
Even if EA has given up on the Mass Effect franchise, the community hasn’t. Aside from a petition, fans are even pitching in to buy billboard ad space at Times Square. There’s also a play day event planned for N7 Day this November.
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