BioWare Shutting Down, Next Mass Effect Canceled

[Cray]

I disagree with that take.

Bioware started making games nobody wanted.

There's certainly an element of them taking too long to make their games etc., money concerns, but the wokeness in their games was definitely an element

Sounds like the sort of thing people were saying about the Odyssey, good games are good games, I doubt wokeness really comes into it much.

. I loved Bioware's older titles. I haven't bought any of their newer stuff. It all just seemed like such trash to me. I am clearly not alone in this.

AI Overview


Electronic Arts (EA) reported that Dragon Age: The Veilguard engaged 1.5 million players in its first three months ending December 31, 2024, falling short of internal sales and player expectations by nearly 50%. [1, 2]

Key Sales & Performance Details

• • Player vs. Unit Count: The 1.5 million figure counts total player reach rather than straight retail sales alone, and it includes subscribers who accessed the game via EA Play Pro. [1, 2]
  • Company Expectations: EA leadership originally anticipated around 3 million players/units in that opening window. [1]
  • Steam Records: The game peaked at over 85,000 concurrent players on Steam during its opening weekend, setting a single-player record for BioWare

It did set a Steam record for Bioware but that is likely that most of Bioware's older games were released in the early days of Steam. I think it sold well enough,just not enough for their corporate overlords.

 

[porchrat]

Sounds like the sort of thing people were saying about the Odyssey, good games are good games, I doubt wokeness really comes into it much.

Difference is people were wrong about the Odyssey, myself included. They were not wrong about Veilguard. It tanked hard.

The Odyssey performed well commercially. Veilguard objectively did not.

It did set a Steam record for Bioware but that is likely that most of Bioware's older games were released in the early days of Steam. I think it sold well enough,just not enough for their corporate overlords.

Veilguard missed its sales targets by 50%. They "engaged" with roughly 1.5 million people (this includes those playing it on subscriptions that didn't actually buy it). They needed something like 4 million sales minimum just to break even on the development costs.

By any objective measurement it was a colossal commercial failure. Estimated at about a $100 million loss for EA when you give them the benefit of the doubt. EA stock fell off a cliff with Veilguard.

Compare this with Dragon Age Inquisition which sold 12 million copies.

I'll say it again: they were making games nobody wanted. You can't do that and survive. Part of the reason nobody wanted the games they were making was the wokeness. It's an element in this equation, whether you like it or not.

 

[Rayne]

 

[Vorastra]

Going to bat for EA in any situation is certainly a choice... EA only give a sh*t about money, and the type of games that Bioware make just aren't as poriftable as the next Battlefield reskin.

Correct, so it behoves them to check up on their studios....and yet, they greenlit 4 games and 1 remake in 12 years AND greenlit a new major Mass Effect development cycle, despite BioWare's continuous failures.

But EA are the bad guys. Enormous amount of leeway shown.

 

[AlphaJohn]

In retrospect Bioware haven't done much for a while, however with their demise goes their IP. The Mass Effect trilogy was epic, and I can't see EA allowing anyone else to work on a new Mass Effect game.

Most ot the team that made Mass Effect 1-3 left EA. They now making Exodus.

 

[Cray]

Most ot the team that made Mass Effect 1-3 left EA. They now making Exodus.

Yeah, I guess we all associate our favourite games with studios but in reality it's about the people who have moved on, not the studio. Excodus looks pretty cool.