In light of Electronic Arts announcing its deal to get acquired by the Saudi Arabia PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, a report from Insider Gaming indicates that the developers working at BioWare are worried about the future of the studio. These worries largely come from the amount of debt that EA has had to take on as part of the deal – around $20 billion out of the overall $55 billion deal.
According to the report, one of the developers from BioWare noted that there were already worries at the studio about the reception to its last game – Dragon Age: The Veilguard – and now the worries about things getting worse for BioWare have increased.
“Look at the negativity that came after Dragon Age,” said one developer. “If we felt it was only going to get worse then, you can imagine what some of us think now.”
Another developer noted that they have already been working on keeping their portfolio up to date thanks to uncertain times at BioWare and EA. They went on to say that, with this new deal that EA has signed, these things seem to only be a matter of time at this point.
“I’ve been doing it since last year, but I’m making sure I have a portfolio ready and feelers out for other jobs,” said the developer. “Kind of feels like a matter of time.”
It is worth noting that BioWare might not see immediate changes to its personnel since the deal for the acquisition of EA is slated to wrap up only by Q1 FY 2027. This means that developers at BioWare that might be worried about the deal leading to more lay-offs might still have more time to get ready. A developer noted that it plans on continuing to work until the studio gets told to stop.
“We’re going to keep working until they tell us were done,” they said. “It’s not the healthiest way to live, but as long as the paychecks keep coming, we’re not going to just walk away.”
Even with the release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, BioWare has faced quite a few issues. Back in February, a report had indicated that the studio’s headcount had shrunk considerably, down to less than 100 employees. Before this report, BioWare was noted as having more than twice as many employees as of 2024.
Another report from earlier this week has indicated that EA’s new owners are looking to turn profits with the company at a quicker pace. This means that Saudi Arabia’s PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners might also be looking to making use of generative AI in order to speed up game development. As is often the case when a company makes a decision like this, the move to use more generative AI tools will also likely lead to more lay-offs across the various studios under the EA banner.
As part of the deal, EA will not be moving from its current headquarters at Redwood City, California, and Andrew Wilson will continue to serve as its CEO.
