EA Closes BioWare and Cancels the Next Mass Effect: What Happens to Dragon Age, the TV Series and 400 Jobs

BioWare is closing. Electronic Arts confirmed on Wednesday, October 21 that it will shut the Edmonton studio behind Mass Effect and Dragon Age, and that the next Mass Effect game — in early development with a small team — will not move forward.

BioWare said it in its own farewell post the same day: "Now, after more than three decades of shared adventures, BioWare is closing and early development on the next Mass Effect project is ending."

It is the end of one of the most influential RPG studios ever — the team that made Baldur's Gate, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect and Dragon Age. Here is everything we know so far, separated into what EA has confirmed and what is still only reporting.

What EA has confirmed

• BioWare and its Edmonton workspace are closing. EA chief operating officer David Tinson and chief studios officer Cam Weber told staff: "We've made the decision not to move forward with this development, which means we're closing the studio and our Edmonton workspace."
• The next Mass Effect is cancelled. EA described it as a small team working on early development. The project was first teased in 2020, was never given an official title or a release window, and was only ever shown in teasers. The last new entry in the series was Mass Effect: Andromeda in 2017.
• EA is narrowing its slate. The company says it will concentrate on fewer large-scale projects. Reuters reports it will keep developing Marvel's Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi game, alongside its sports games, Apex Legends and Battlefield.
• Other teams are being reshaped too. EA is restructuring the team behind skate. into a smaller studio, and a Sims project codenamed Project Lotus is being ended in favour of a project codenamed Evergreen, according to the staff letter reported by multiple outlets.
• EA says it will help affected staff look for other roles inside EA. That line comes from EA's own announcement, reported by Reuters.

EA has not announced any plan to hand the cancelled Mass Effect project to another studio.

The numbers behind the closure — reported, not announced by EA

EA itself has not published a headcount. The figures circulating come from Bloomberg reporting, cited by Reuters, Push Square and other outlets:

• Around 400 jobs are being cut across EA, roughly 3% of the company's workforce
• Around 50 of those jobs are at BioWare

The timing matters. EA was taken private in a $55 billion deal led by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, which closed in August 2026. Gamereactor, VGC and other outlets report the buyout left EA with around $18 billion in debt and roughly $1.8 billion a year in interest, and that EA had promised investors $700 million in annual cost reductions. Treat those figures as reported context, not numbers EA confirmed in the closure announcement — but they are the backdrop every major report points to, in what is described as EA's first major restructuring since the buyout.

What happens to Dragon Age and the games you already own?

This is the part EA has said the least about, so be careful with anything more definitive than this:

• No new Dragon Age game was announced as continuing. BioWare's last release was Dragon Age: The Veilguard in 2024. It drew mostly positive reviews but missed EA's sales expectations, and EA downsized the studio to work on one game at a time afterwards.
• Existing BioWare games remain on sale. Well-Played reports no regional availability changes have been announced.
• Support for existing games has not been addressed. Gamereactor notes EA has not announced what happens to support for existing titles. If you own Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Knights of the Old Republic or any other BioWare game, nothing about your library has been announced as changing.

In short: the studio and its next game are confirmed gone. The future of the Mass Effect and Dragon Age franchises themselves has not been announced — EA has not said the IPs are retired, and it has not announced a replacement studio or a new project for either.

The Mass Effect TV series is reportedly still in development

One part of Mass Effect is, reportedly, still alive. According to IGN reporting cited by Push Square, VGC and Radio Times on October 22, Amazon MGM Studios' Mass Effect TV series remains in development, with sources inside Prime Video saying work is still ongoing and everyone previously announced is still attached.

That team includes showrunner Doug Jung and writer Daniel Casey, with Karim Zreik, Ari Arad and BioWare's Michael Gamble as executive producers. Gamble previously said the series will tell a new story set after the original trilogy, rather than retelling Commander Shepard's story.

Important caveats: this is sourced reporting, not an Amazon announcement on the record. The show was officially reported as in development in November 2024, and there is still no casting announcement, no filming date and no release date. "Still in development" is not the same as "definitely coming out" — but as of today, it has not been cancelled alongside the game.

A 31-year run, in short

• 1995: BioWare is founded in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, by Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk and Augustine Yip
• Breakthrough years: Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire establish BioWare as the defining Western RPG studio
• 2007: EA acquires BioWare, around the release of the original Mass Effect
• 2019–2024: Anthem underperforms, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard follows a long, turbulent development in 2024, reviewing well but missing EA's sales expectations
• October 21, 2026: EA closes the studio and ends the next Mass Effect

In its farewell, BioWare told fans: "What generations of BioWare built together is something to celebrate and remember."

FAQ

Is BioWare really closing?

Yes. EA confirmed on October 21, 2026 that it is closing BioWare and its Edmonton workspace, and BioWare confirmed it in its own farewell statement the same day.

Is the next Mass Effect cancelled?

Yes. The untitled next Mass Effect — first teased in 2020 and in early development with a small team — will not move forward. It never had an official title, so "Mass Effect 5" was always a fan and media shorthand, not an announced name.

How many jobs are being cut?

EA has not published a number. Bloomberg reporting cited by Reuters and others puts it at around 400 jobs across EA, including around 50 at BioWare.

Will my Mass Effect and Dragon Age games be delisted?

No delisting or availability change has been announced. Existing BioWare games remain on sale, and EA has not announced changes to support for games you already own.

Is the Mass Effect TV show cancelled too?

Not according to the latest reporting. IGN sources inside Prime Video say Amazon MGM Studios' series is still in development with its announced creatives still attached. Amazon has not announced a release date, and that status is reported, not confirmed on the record by Amazon.

Could another EA studio make Mass Effect or Dragon Age next?

EA has not announced any such plan. It has not said the franchises are retired either — their future is simply unannounced as of October 22.

Your choices still matter here

Log the Mass Effect or Dragon Age run that stayed with you, rate the trilogy, and find the other players still debating their choices after all these years.