Dragon Age Series Not Dead, Assures Former BioWare Developer

Following layoffs at BioWare that led to the departure of many key developers of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, a former writer on the series has moved to reassure fans, stating, "DA isn't dead because it's yours now." This week, EA restructured BioWare to exclusively focus on Mass Effect 5. Some developers who worked on Dragon Age: The Veilguard were reassigned to other projects within EA studios, such as John Epler, the creative director of Veilguard, who joined Full Circle's team working on the upcoming skateboarding game Skate. However, others were laid off and are now seeking new employment opportunities.

The restructuring came after EA announced that Dragon Age: The Veilguard had underperformed compared to their expectations for the eagerly awaited action RPG. According to EA, the game engaged 1.5 million players during its recent financial quarter, marking a nearly 50% shortfall from the company's projections. It's important to note that EA did not clarify whether this figure represents unit sales, as Dragon Age: The Veilguard was also accessible through EA's Play Pro subscription service. Additionally, it remains unclear if the 1.5 million player count includes those who participated in a free trial available via the more affordable EA Play subscription.

These announcements, coupled with the restructuring at BioWare and the confirmation of layoffs, have fueled concerns among the Dragon Age fandom that the series may be nearing its end. There are no plans for DLC for The Veilguard, and BioWare's work on the game concluded last week with what was described as its final major update.

However, Dragon Age: The Veilguard senior writer Sheryl Chee, who transitioned from BioWare to work on Iron Man at Motive, took to social media to offer words of encouragement. Chee shared, "I'm now with Motive. It's been a challenging two years watching my team diminish while still pushing forward. But I'm still employed, so there's that." Responding to a fan's lament over the perceived death of Dragon Age, Chee emphasized the series' enduring legacy through fan contributions. She quoted Camus, saying, "In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer," and added, "DA isn't dead. There's fic. There's art. There's the connections we made through the games and because of the games. Technically EA/BioWare owns the IP, but you can't own an idea, no matter how much they want to. DA isn't dead because it's yours now."

Chee further elaborated, "So someone just reposted my thing saying they'll write a giant AU and that's what I'm talking about. If DA has inspired you to do something, if it sparks that Invincible summer, then it's done its job, and it has been my greatest honor to have been a part of that."

The Dragon Age series began with Dragon Age: Origins in 2010, followed by Dragon Age 2 in 2011, and Dragon Age: Inquisition in 2014. It took a decade for the latest installment, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, to be released. In September, former Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah, who left BioWare in 2020, disclosed that Dragon Age Inquisition had sold over 12 million copies, significantly exceeding EA's internal projections.

While EA has not officially declared the end of Dragon Age, the current developments at BioWare and their full focus on Mass Effect 5 make the prospect of a new Dragon Age game in the near future seem unlikely. Regarding Mass Effect, EA has stated that a "core team" at BioWare, led by veterans from the original trilogy including Mike Gamble, Preston Watamaniuk, Derek Watts, Parrish Ley, and others, is developing the next installment. EA told IGN, "While we're not sharing numbers, the studio has the right number of people in the right roles to work on Mass Effect at this stage of development."