EA CEO Still Has High Hopes for Bioware, Despite "Blips"

EA has a reputation -- one that's entirely well-deserved -- for being a company that will cannibalize a studio if they fail to live up to their expectations. They've destroyed so many promising studios, from Bullfrog to Westwood to Viceral, that many began to fear that their most beloved acquisition, Bioware, might someday suffer the same fate. Those fears have only been exaggerated in recent years, as Bioware suffered two enormous blows in the form of Anthem, their failed Destiny-like, and Mass Effect: Andromeda, which wasn't a worthy successor to the franchise it borrows its name from even without all the bugs and jank.

However, with Mass Effect: Legendary Edition on the horizon, Bioware has a chance to reimpress us with some of its old glories. And in that vain, EA boss and CEO Andrew Wilson tried to reassure people doing their third quarter FY2021 earnings call that despite Bioware's recent failures, EA still has high hopes for the studio.
 

"That is an incredible studio filled with incredible people who do incredible work... I think that from the outside world, there have been some blips in their delivery over the last couple of years, but that has come as a result of them pushing deeply into innovation and creativity, and we feel very, very confident and their future roadmap, and we've talked about games like Dragon Age and Mass Effect in their future."

EA's hesitation to shut down Bioware makes as much sense from a marketing perspective as a PR one. While Bioware has been known to stumble, compromise their vision, or even engage in some of the worst management and development practices in the business... it doesn't change the fact that they can produce some of the best damn video games ever made. And people would wade through a dozen Anthems if it means producing another gem like the original Mass Effect trilogy.

I mean crap, did you see the trailer for the legendary edition?

Chills. And that's even knowing how it all ends.