Electronic Arts to Close BioWare, Cancel Next Mass Effect and Cut About 400 Jobs
Electronic Arts is closing BioWare, ending development of the studio’s next *Mass Effect* game and cutting about 400 jobs across the company as it narrows its slate of projects.
EA confirmed Wednesday that the early-stage *Mass Effect* project had been canceled and BioWare’s Edmonton office would close. Bloomberg reported that the broader layoffs represent about 3% of EA’s workforce and include roughly 50 BioWare employees. EA said it would help affected workers explore other opportunities within the company.
“BioWare is a legendary studio that helped define the role-playing genre, and we do not take this decision lightly,” EA executives Cam Weber and David Tinson wrote in a staff memo.
Founded in 1995 and acquired by EA in 2007, BioWare developed role-playing series including *Mass Effect* and *Dragon Age*, as well as *Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic*. Its latest release, *Dragon …