Former BioWare developers have shared their insights on the recent performance and comments surrounding *Dragon Age: The Veilguard*. During a financial call, EA's CEO Andrew Wilson stated that *Dragon Age: The Veilguard* did not "resonate with a broad enough audience," indicating that the game failed to meet the company's expectations for this long-awaited action RPG. EA reported that *Dragon Age: The Veilguard* engaged 1.5 million players during its recent financial quarter, which was nearly 50% below the company's projections.
Following the game's underperformance, EA restructured BioWare to focus solely on *Mass Effect 5*. This restructuring led to some staff being reassigned to other EA studios, while others were laid off. IGN has detailed the development challenges faced by *Dragon Age: The Veilguard*, including layoffs and the departure of several project leads. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier noted that BioWare staff considered it a "miracle" that the game was released as a complete product, given EA's initial push for a live-service model and subsequent reversal.
Wilson suggested that for BioWare’s role-playing games to achieve the success EA seeks, they need to incorporate "shared-world features and deeper engagement alongside high-quality narratives." He believes that such elements are necessary to attract a wider audience in today's competitive market. However, *Dragon Age: The Veilguard* shifted from a multiplayer framework to a single-player RPG following a development reboot backed by EA.
In response to Wilson's comments, former BioWare staff have taken to social media to voice their opinions. David Gaider, the creator of the *Dragon Age* setting and former narrative lead, criticized EA's takeaway that the game should have been a live service. Gaider, now at Summerfall Studios, suggested that EA should focus on what *Dragon Age* did best at its peak and emulate the success of *Baldur’s Gate 3*, a predominantly single-player RPG with multiplayer co-op elements.
“My advice to EA (not that they care): you have an IP that a lot of people love. Deeply. At its height, it sold well enough to make you happy, right? Look at what it did best at the point where it sold the most. Follow Larian's lead and double down on that. The audience is still there. And waiting,” Gaider stated.
Mike Laidlaw, former creative director on *Dragon Age* and now at Yellow Brick Games, echoed Gaider's sentiments, stating he would quit if forced to transform a beloved single-player game into a multiplayer-only title. “Look, I'm not a fancy CEO guy, but if someone said to me ‘the key to this successful single-player IP's success is to make it purely a multiplayer game. No, not a spin off: fundamentally change the DNA of what people loved about the core game’ to me, I'd probably, like, quit that job or something,” Laidlaw remarked.
As a result of these events, *Dragon Age* appears to be on hold, with BioWare now fully dedicated to *Mass Effect 5*, led by series veterans. EA CFO Stuart Canfield emphasized the evolving industry landscape and the strategic reallocation of resources towards high-potential opportunities like *Mass Effect 5*, which has seen the studio's workforce significantly reduced.
