GamesMarket日报2026年10月22日：EA关闭BioWare、Spiel Essen、Steam榜单、Side收购Roboto

BioWare, dear readers,

is now joining the ranks of studios that Electronic Arts has closed down — an illustrious group that includes Westwood, Origin, Bullfrog, Mythic and Pandemic. But why has the legendary studio behind Baldur's Gate, Jade Empire, Mass Effect and Dragon Age been shut down now? While some have speculated about ideological reasons relating to LGBTQ+ content in connection with The Veilguard, the closure is more likely a direct consequence of a combination of BioWare's failures and the financial pressure resulting from the company's acquisition by a consortium led by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), together with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. This private leveraged buyout involved passing on a substantial portion of the purchase price as debt to the acquired company itself. In order to service this debt and boost profitability, EA has embarked on a cost-cutting programme. As part of this restructuring, the company is cutting around 3% of its global workforce (approximately 400 jobs), and BioWare is being closed down - and it's highly likely that these measures would not be enough.

Although BioWare was regarded as an RPG legend, it had struggled internally for almost a decade due to problems, poor planning and brain drain. Mass Effect: Andromeda (2017), the live-service project Anthem (2019) and Dragon Age: The Veilguard (released late 2024) all failed to live up to expectations. The studio was a shadow of its former self and, since 2020, had been in the very early stages of developing the next Mass Effect game. It is possible that other EA studios could continue the BioWare franchises, but given the current situation, it is more likely that they will sell the IPs to reduce their debt.

EA has emphasised that it intends to focus its resources on fewer but more profitable franchises in future, such as Battlefield, Apex Legends, Battlefront, the Star Wars Jedi series, and of course the sports games. This will be particularly important to the new owners, as the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund is pursuing the goal of establishing the country as a global hub for entertainment, sport and gaming under 'Vision 2030'. EA is a key piece in this puzzle, as Saudi Arabia has been buying real-life football clubs, investing billions in its domestic league and hosting major sporting events for years as part of its pursuit of soft power. With EA Sports FC, they now own the most powerful virtual equivalent of this, which is deeply rooted in the global sporting community. At the same time, the Kingdom is investing heavily in eeports, and EA's competitive sports and shooter titles fit perfectly into these national event plans. However, BioWare's long-term development of single-player projects, which are quite risky in some cases, no longer aligns with this broader vision. This is regrettable, especially as yet another long-standing EA studio is closing down.

Here are the news of the day!

Yours Marcel Kleffmann

EA Is Closing Bioware and Making More Job Cuts

It was anticipated, and has now been confirmed: Electronic Arts has closed the BioWare studio. Furthermore, reports of further redundancies and portfolio adjustments are emerging.
(Read more...)

by Marcel Kleffmann

Kick-Off for Spiel 2026 in Essen: Awards, Growing Numbers and Future Issues

The international board game industry as well as the community gather in Essen, Germany, to show, try and celebrate the newest games at Spiel 2026, the world’s largest board game fair. We’ve covered the opening event and awards here.
(Read more...)

by Melanie Döring & Pascal Wagner

Sign up for GamesMarket

The Games Industry B2B Magazine for Europe, from Germany.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

(GM+) Weekly Steam Charts: Modern Warfare 4 Is on the Rise, but How Is Enshrouded Performing?

This week's Steam charts feature different games at number one in both the German and global charts. However, Modern Warfare 4, Enshrouded and EA Sports FC 27 are not holding the #1 spots.
(Read more...)

by Marcel Kleffmann

More News of the Day...

Roblox: Rapid Trend Adaptation, Strong Concentration on a Small Number of Experiences

Newzoo and GEEIQ have published a joint report on Roblox and what the maturing of its audience means for games publishers. Not every genre is affected to the same extent, and so far only a few publishers have ventured onto Roblox.
(Read more...)

ITFS Launches Competition for Animated Games Award Germany 2027

Studios from Germany have until 7 February to submit projects for the Animated Games Award Germany. The competition’s nominees will be screened as part of the Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film.
(Read more...)

+++ Jobs +++ Jobs +++ Jobs +++ Jobs +++ Jobs +++ Jobs +++

• Senior Game Designer (InnoGames)
• Concept Artist (Snowprint Studios)
• Senior Backend Developer (Snowprint Studios)
• Game Analyst for Forge of Empires (InnoGames)
• Marketing Artist (Hutch)

More Jobs

Side Acquires Roboto, Appoints Codella and Strengthens Its Presence in China

The acquisition of Roboto Entertainment is a threefold win for Side: as well as gaining further resources, the games service provider is strengthening its presence in China and, with Roboto founder Andrea Cordella, is gaining an experienced Global Head of Art.
(Read more...)

Exhibitions & Events

20.10. - 21.10.2026: Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics (Helsinki)
22.10. - 23.10.2026: W Love Games 2026 (Helsinki)
21.10. - 24.10.2026: Games Industry Conference (Poznan)
21.10. - 24.10.2026: EVA 2026 – Argentine Video Game Expo (Buenos Aires)
22.10. - 25.10.2026: Paris Games Week (Paris)
23.10.2026: German Esports Summit (Cologne)
23.10. - 25.10.2026: FrankenLAN (Bayreuth)
22.10. - 25.10.2026: Spiel Essen (Essen)
29.10. - 01.11.2026: gamescom asia x Thailand Game Show (Bangkok)
03.11. - 04.11.2026: GodotFest (Munich)
03.11. - 04.11.2026: Game Research Days (Jyväskylä)
04.11.2026: Online Service Summit (Stockholm)
05.11. - 08.11.2026: Games Ground (Berlin)
07.11. - 08.11.2026: AdventureX (London)
10.11. - 11.11.2026: MIGS - Montréal International Game Summit (Montréal) 04.11.2026: Invest in Games (Stockholm)
12.11. - 13.11.2026: The Games Forum Roma (Roma)
14.11. - 22.11.2026: Dutch Games Week (Breda)
17.11. - 18.11.2026: DevGamm Lisbon (Lisbon)
18.11.2026: DevGamm Awards (Lisbon)
18.11. - 21.11.2026: Play26 Festival (Hamburg)

Find more events in our GamesMarket calendar.

💚

Love what we do but aren't supporting already? Become a member for access to all exclusive content or donate to keep GamesMarket running.