EA Closes BioWare, Cuts 400 Jobs

Electronic Arts has announced a significant restructuring effort, resulting in the closure of the legendary studio BioWare and the termination of approximately 400 employees. This workforce reduction represents a 3% cut to the company’s total staff and continues a multi-year trend of downsizing, following previous layoffs of 800 roles in 2023, 670 in 2024, and over 400 in 2025. The decision is framed by leadership as a strategic move to align talent with long-term growth opportunities and to concentrate resources on fewer, large-scale projects.

The closure of BioWare includes the cancellation of a new Mass Effect title that was in early development. Beyond this, the company is pausing development on Project Lotus, a mobile-focused Sims experience, and downsizing the team responsible for the live-service title Skate. Conversely, the company is reallocating resources to resurrect the Fight Night boxing franchise, initiating a new open-world project titled Project Gridiron, and tasking teams at DICE and Respawn with a collaborative project, reportedly a new entry in the Star Wars Battlefront series.

These organizational changes occur within the context of an industry-wide struggle to manage escalating development costs, which has prompted similar downsizing across major gaming entities. Furthermore, the restructuring follows the completion of a $55 billion debt-financed acquisition of Electronic Arts by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s public wealth fund, which took the company private in August 2026. Despite consistent layoffs over the past four years, the company’s total headcount had previously continued to grow due to aggressive hiring, though current indicators suggest a shift toward a more constrained operational model.