Former BioWare Executive Producer Mark Darrah believes Electronic Arts may become more inclined to sell intellectual properties such as Mass Effect and Dragon Age following the recent closure of its BioWare studio. EA announced a significant restructuring on October 21, which included the shutdown of the BioWare studio responsible for these celebrated franchises.
"As we focus on these larger opportunities, we've had a small team at BioWare working on early-development for Mass Effect," EA stated in its announcement. "We've made the decision not to move forward with this development, which means we’re closing the studio and our Edmonton workspace. BioWare is a legendary studio that helped define the role-playing genre, and we do not take this decision lightly."
This news prompted a strong reaction from the gaming community, with many fans expressing sadness and offering support to the displaced staff. A key question emerging from the situation is the future of BioWare's intellectual property. Some fans have suggested EA should sell these IPs to other developers, with CD Projekt Red frequently cited due to existing ties between the studios.
Darrah, who was an executive producer at BioWare from 1997 to 2021, shared his perspective in a YouTube video. "EA owns all the IPs. They own Dragon Age, they own Mass Effect, they own Jade Empire," he explained. "That doesn’t change the situation, really, at all."
He elaborated that the absence of any internal teams working on BioWare titles within EA could make the company more open to selling these IPs. Conversely, he noted that EA might also opt to shelve them indefinitely. "I think we still are gonna have to wait a little bit before we see if EA has any interest in selling off some of its dormant IPs," Darrah said. "Right now, they seem to be in cost control mode. They might start into a revenue-generation mode where selling IPs might be more desirable."
This discussion follows EA's acquisition by a consortium of private investors in August for $55 billion. This investment group reportedly anticipates using artificial intelligence to reduce operational costs and manage the significant debt incurred from the acquisition. Given this financial context, the possibility of EA selling off BioWare's valuable franchises is a point of speculation among fans, especially concerning the potential fate of Mass Effect 5.