Electronic Arts told employees it will eliminate about 400 positions, around 3% of its workforce, and close BioWare. The staff note reviewed by Bloomberg was signed by Chief Operating Officer David Tinson and Chief Studios Officer Cam Weber.
The letter said, "over the past several months, we've taken a hard look at our business," and that review is leading to project cancellations. The job totals, including roughly 50 at BioWare, came from a person with knowledge of the plans who was not authorized to speak publicly.
One of the halted projects is the next Mass Effect game, which had only progressed into early work at BioWare. EA also said it is dropping a Sims initiative code-named Project Lotus and will prioritize a different effort called Project Evergreen. The company will keep building the skateboarding title skate but will trim the team working on it.
On the keep list: EA will keep investing in its sports portfolio and in Apex Legends. It also plans to back action-adventure titles, naming the next Star Wars Jedi game and a new release starring Marvel's Iron Man. EA said the Battlefield series will continue, and its Respawn and DICE teams will partner on a new project that is expected to be another Star Wars Battlefront installment.
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Founded in 1995 and acquired by EA in 2007, BioWare delivered early hits in the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series. The studio later stumbled with poorly reviewed entries like Mass Effect: Andromeda and Anthem. Its latest release, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, missed sales goals and prompted EA to sharply reduce the studio last year.
"Across our portfolio, we're making deliberate choices to align talent and investments where we see the greatest opportunities for players and long-term growth," the executives wrote. Earlier this year, EA told investors it was aiming to save as much as $700 million, including through cuts to research and development spending. In August, EA went private through a leveraged buyout worth $55 billion backed by Saudi Arabia's investment fund, a move that put about $18 billion of debt on the company.
In plain English: EA is concentrating capital and teams around franchises it views as durable moneymakers while exiting projects with weaker prospects. For your portfolio, that means near term restructuring costs and headcount cuts, paired with a heavier focus on live services, sports, and major licensed titles like Star Wars and Marvel.
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