GoKawiilEA shuts down BioWare's Edmonton studio, cancels Mass Effect 5
EA told staff this week that it is closing BioWare's Edmonton office, its last remaining studio, and canceling the early-stage next Mass Effect project. The move eliminated about 50 BioWare jobs as part of roughly 400 layoffs across EA following the company's $55 billion leveraged buyout earlier this year.
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The closure ends a 30-year run for a studio credited with shaping the modern RPG genre through titles like Baldur's Gate and Mass Effect, even though its recent releases had underperformed commercially. EA's buyout by the Saudi-led Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners left the company carrying about $20 billion in debt, which could be driving broader cost-cutting pressure across its studios.
- EA closed BioWare's Edmonton studio and canceled the next Mass Effect game.
- About 400 EA jobs were cut this week, including roughly 50 at BioWare.
- The layoffs follow EA's $55 billion leveraged buyout that added about $20 billion in debt.
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Published there as: “EA closes legendary RPG studio BioWare following its $55 billion buyout”
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