EA Is Shutting Down BioWare, and the Next Mass Effect Is Cancelled
EA is closing BioWare, the studio behind Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Knights of the Old Republic, after 31 years. The next Mass Effect is cancelled as part of 400 layoffs across EA.
By Matthew Joiner, Editor in Chief
The studio that gave us Commander Shepard, the Normandy and some of the best companions in gaming is closing. On October 21, 2026, Electronic Arts confirmed it is shutting down BioWare and cancelling the next Mass Effect, which was in early development.
The news came in an internal memo from EA's Chief Studios Officer Cam Weber and Chief Operating Officer David Tinson, first reported by Bloomberg and Variety. BioWare later confirmed the closure in a public statement thanking its community.
The key facts
- BioWare is closing, including its home studio in Edmonton, Canada. It was founded there in 1995.
- The next Mass Effect is cancelled. It was still in early development. EA still owns Mass Effect and Dragon Age, but it hasn't announced any plans for either series.
- About 400 jobs are being cut across EA, roughly 3% of the company. About 50 of those are at BioWare, according to reports. Some reports say part of the team could move to other EA projects, but EA hasn't shared details.
- Why now: EA went private in August 2026 in a $55 billion leveraged buyout backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. That deal left the company with heavy debt and a push to cut costs.
What EA is focusing on instead
In the memo, Weber and Tinson said the company took a "hard look" at its business and is moving resources toward what it sees as bigger opportunities:
- Battlefield and Apex Legends
- EA Sports, including Project Gridiron (an open-world American football game) and a return of Fight Night
- Action-adventure games like Marvel's Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi
- A new Respawn and DICE project that sources tell Variety is Star Wars: Battlefront 3 (not officially confirmed)
The cuts go beyond BioWare. EA is also pausing Project Lotus for The Sims and shrinking the team behind skate.
31 years of BioWare
It's hard to overstate what this studio meant to RPGs. Here's the short version:
| Year | Game |
|---|---|
| 1998 | Baldur's Gate |
| 2002 | Neverwinter Nights |
| 2003 | Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic |
| 2005 | Jade Empire |
| 2007 | Mass Effect |
| 2009 | Dragon Age: Origins |
| 2010 | Mass Effect 2 |
| 2012 | Mass Effect 3 |
| 2014 | Dragon Age: Inquisition |
| 2017 | Mass Effect: Andromeda |
| 2019 | Anthem |
| 2021 | Mass Effect Legendary Edition |
| 2024 | Dragon Age: The Veilguard |
EA bought BioWare in 2007, the same year the first Mass Effect came out. The last several years were rough. Anthem struggled at launch and its planned overhaul was cancelled. In early 2025, EA said Dragon Age: The Veilguard didn't reach a broad enough audience, and it moved BioWare's remaining team over to Mass Effect. That Mass Effect is the game that's now cancelled.
The reaction
The news hit hard, especially in Edmonton. Mark Meer, the Edmonton actor who voiced the male Commander Shepard, called it a deep loss, the Edmonton Journal reported. Mayor Andrew Knack said the city is losing an anchor employer for its tech and creative scene.
Our Take
This one hurts. BioWare made the kind of games where your choices followed you from one game to the next, and where the companions felt like actual friends. Nobody else did it quite like them.
It's also a warning sign. Big story driven, single player RPGs take years and a lot of money to make. When a publisher is carrying billions in debt, those are the first projects to go. EA still owns Mass Effect and Dragon Age, so these worlds aren't technically gone. But for now, there's no studio and no plan.
If you've got a BioWare game sitting in your backlog, maybe this is the week to play it.
What's your favorite BioWare game? Mass Effect 2, KOTOR, Dragon Age: Origins? Tell us on Instagram.
