Dragon Age Developers Reveal They’ve Been Laid Off After BioWare Puts ‘Full Focus’ on Mass Effect

Key Dragon Age developers depart BioWare following restructuring for Mass Effect 5.

On January 29th, IGN reported that BioWare had reassigned numerous developers to other EA projects, fully focusing on Mass Effect 5. General manager Gary McKay stated the studio is "reimagining how we work" between development cycles and that the full studio's support wasn't currently needed for the Dragon Age project. Many employees were successfully transitioned to other suitable roles within EA. However, some Dragon Age team members faced termination, with the option to apply for other internal positions.

Subsequently, several BioWare developers announced their departures on social media. This includes editor Karin West-Weekes, narrative designer and lead writer on Dragon Age: The Veilguard Trick Weekes, editor Ryan Cormier, producer Jen Cheverie, and senior systems designer Michelle Flamm. These departures follow 2023 layoffs and the recent exit of Dragon Age: The Veilguard director Corinne Busche.

EA's response regarding the impact of these changes remained vague, stating that the studio is appropriately staffed for the current Mass Effect development phase. They did not provide specific numbers on affected individuals.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the first new entry in the series in a decade, concluded its development last week with what appeared to be its final major update. The game's launch was notably underwhelming, with BioWare confirming no post-launch DLC, a significant departure from previous Dragon Age titles. EA later admitted the game missed sales expectations by 50%, achieving only 1.5 million players instead of the projected three million. The game's development had already been marked by challenges, including layoffs and the departure of several key personnel.

The next Mass Effect game is being developed by a "core team" at BioWare, led by veterans of the original trilogy, including Mike Gamble, Preston Watamaniuk, Derek Watts, and Parrish Ley.