BioWare, the once revered RPG studio, reportedly finds itself in a precarious position following the news of EA's planned acquisition.
If you're not quite up to speed on the situation, the publisher, which is BioWare's parent company, has agreed to a $55 billion buyout. An investor consortium made up of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners will assume full ownership of the company in Q1, 2027.
After the announcement was made, immediate concerns were raised over the future of EA's many game developers. After all, investment firms will often look for short-term returns on their latest acquisitions — and for an entity as massive as EA, that could well mean that operations will be 'streamlined'.
In BioWare's case, the studio is already on uncertain ground — and has been for years now. Its most recent release, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, struggled for sales, adding to the pressure that's been growing ever since the deeply misguided efforts of ANTHEM and Mass Effect: Andromeda.
And now, according to Insider Gaming sources, there's real concern amongst the developer's employees.
"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," Insider Gaming writes.
One source explains: "If we felt it was only going to get worse [after Dragon Age: The Veilguard], you can imagine what some of us think now.”
Another source simply tells it like it is: "I’m making sure I have a portfolio ready and feelers out for other jobs."
Insider Gaming's report also claims that at some point, EA was looking to cut BioWare loose and sell the studio off — but it's unclear what actually happened on that front (and a deal obviously never materialised).
At this moment in time, BioWare is still working on the next Mass Effect, which has only been teased up until now. Supposedly, development on the game has ramped up recently, but the project's viability will almost certainly be called into question over the coming months.
Do you think BioWare's living on borrowed time right now? What do you think the future of EA actually looks like? Try to hold some kind of hope in the comments section below.