BioWare Announces Major Reorganization: Core Team Shifts Focus to Mass Effect 5 Amidst Staff Reallocation at EA

In the midst of evaluations regarding possible layoffs at BioWare, studio head Gary McKay has confirmed that “many” employees have now been relocated to different areas within EA following the completion of Dragon Age: The Veilguard – and that a final core team, comprising a selection of established Mass Effect veterans, is wholly dedicated to Mass Effect 5.

In a statement posted on BioWare’s website, McKay noted that the studio is currently “preparing for [its] next chapter”, with a “core team” led by Mike Gamble, Preston Watamaniuk, Derek Watts, and Parrish Ley now engaged on the upcoming Mass Effect. However, reflecting on comments made by former studio director Mark Darrah last week, McKay emphasized that the project is still at a stage that does not “require support from the entire studio”.

As a result, BioWare has streamlined to what McKay describes as a “more agile, focused studio”. While specific numbers were not disclosed, the transition appears to have affected a significant number of staff, with McKay announcing that BioWare has been collaborating to “match many of our colleagues with other teams at EA that had open roles that were well-suited.”

However, while McKay’s statement hints at layoffs, IGN reports that a second group of BioWare employees also had their positions terminated without being transferred to new roles – EA, for its part, has provided them time to seek new employment within the company if they choose to. The writer did not provide significant clarity in a follow-up statement to IGN, indicating that they would no longer be “sharing numbers”, but that BioWare now “has the right number of people in the right roles to work on Mass Effect at this stage of development.”

Today’s BioWare studio update follows closely on the heels of what appears to be Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s final update, and comes after EA’s recent acknowledgment of the story R