Publisher Electronic Arts (EA) has announced a major corporate restructuring across its studios business, resulting in workforce reductions of approximately 3% (~400 employees) and the closure of legendary RPG studio BioWare, known for the Mass Effect and Dragon Age franchises.
The strategic overhaul, detailed in an internal executive memo reported by Variety, marks EA’s first reported major operational realignment since its $55bn (~£42.3bn) private equity buyout backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners, completed in August 2026. The corporate pivot signals a shift away from standalone single-player projects toward scalable Games-as-a-Service (GaaS), live-service shooters, and competitive ecosystems.
In the joint memo to staff, available in full in the Variety report, President and Chief Studios Officer Cam Weber alongside President and COO David Tinson outlined three core strategic priorities: deepening core franchises, expanding into new geographic markets like Asia, and transforming business models around interactive sports engagement.
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Under the revised studio portfolio, EA is doubling down on its flagship competitive title, Apex Legends, committing heavy investment over the next several years. Developed by Respawn Entertainment, the battle royale will introduce brand-new multiplayer modes and expanded live-service experiences aimed at driving long-term player retention and competitive engagement.
Concurrently, EA highlighted the commercial success of Battlefield 6 as a foundation for its live-service shooter strategy, confirming that Respawn and DICE will collaborate on an unannounced shooter project, reported by Variety as Star Wars: Battlefront 3.
As part of the restructuring, EA cancelled early development on the next Mass Effect title and closed BioWare’s Edmonton workspace entirely. While action-adventure titles such as Marvel’s Iron Man and the next Star Wars Jedi game remain in active production, EA executives confirmed the publisher will concentrate resources on fewer simultaneous single-player projects.
The restructure further cements EA SPORTS as a central driver of EA’s commercial strategy. Alongside ongoing investment in the global EA FC franchise, the division is developing two new unannounced projects. These include “Project Gridiron,” a social-first open-world experience for American football fans, and pre-production on a revived Fight Night boxing title leveraging simulation fighting mechanics.
In the lifestyle sector, EA is adjusting development roadmaps to focus on persistent engagement, prioritising “Project Evergreen” for The Sims while scaling down the development team behind skateboarding title Skate.
