On Monday it was announced that Electronic Arts (EA) is being sold to a group of investors that include Silver Lake, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners. This deal is for roughly $55 billion and includes $20 billion in debt to be taken on by EA from JPMorgan Chase. With the company going private with the deal and taking on this new debt, it has, once again, seen many under the EA umbrella start to worry about what it means for the future. From studios to in-development games, how aggressive will the changes be in order to pay off that debt.
One studio especially worried about the future is BioWare.
In January, the Edmonton-based studio saw a number of staff let go after Dragon Age: The Veilguard failed to meet expectations set by EA. At the time, a number of employees spoke about the fear of another wave of layoffs. While that hasn’t happened, many have continued to work with a feeling that any day could be the last of BioWare has they know it.
Fast forward to today, and that feeling has grown tenfold.
Multiple sources within the company have spoken under the condition of anonymity about their feelings over the last 24 hours. Of those who spoke, most believe that BioWare will be one of the first studios to see more cuts when the new group takes over.
“Look at the negativity that came after Dragon Age,” said one source. “If we felt it was only going to get worse then, you can imagine what some of us think now.”
The sale of EA to the investor group isn’t expected to close until Q1 Fiscal Year 2027, meaning that studios and employees likely have until at least April 2026 before anything becomes official. That said, there are a few that are already preparing to look for work elsewhere.
“I’ve been doing it since last year, but I’m making sure I have a portfolio ready and feelers out for other jobs,” another current employee said. “Kind of feels like a matter of time.”
When asked for why they feel that way about BioWare specifically, almost all of them pointed to the discussions that happened after Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s release. The company’s headcount was cut to less than 100 people after having more than 200 in 2023. While staff reduction is normal for studios after big game releases, the drastic number has people wondering if EA planned for more cuts at BioWare.
Insider Gaming understands that, at one point, there were talks of EA looking to sell off the studio. Where those ended up, however, is unknown.
Regarding where things stand with Mass Effect, they all are working under the assumption that the game is going to come out. At the beginning of the year, only a small team was actively working on it, but more resources had recently started to be put into the game.
“We’re going to keep working until they tell us were done,” Insider Gaming was told. “It’s not the healthiest way to live, but as long as the paychecks keep coming, we’re not going to just walk away.”
What do you think the future holds for BioWare and other EA studios? Let us know down in the comments below, and join the newly relaunched Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Mike has been covering the gaming industry since 2012, and has reported on some of the largest events in the industry while also working as an investigative reporter. Outside of…
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If any of these people aren’t looking for jobs, they aren’t prepared…
Im not worried, there hasn’t been a decent let alone a good BIOware title in over a decade. Its all been trash and nonsense.
I’m surprised if anybody even cares at this point.
They should’ve been more concerned with writing in a compelling narrative. Instead of writing in “The Message” for all the chuds.
Made bad game for years now yeah layoff would happend regardless….
They should have worried about the studio’s future after the Muyzaka brothers left.
The Saudis will want EA to do the things that make money. There still will be sexy content, maybe more, but not lectures on pronouns, or gender theory. They will probably have mass layoffs of problematic employees, they will shut down studios, bring the talented developers from different studios to work on the IPs that sell. Mass Effect is getting an Amazon show. EA is either going to make the game, or sell it to someone that will, maybe a foriegn Studio.
I am amused at the thought of Jared Kushner finding out how Dragon Veil guard blew by Baron Trump. “You said it would be a good game!” , “Well, I did play Dragon Age Origins, years ago, and it was good then, sorry I’ll fix this!”