Key Takeaways
- BioWare head Gary McKay addresses the studio’s 2023 layoffs.
- This saw longtime writers lose their jobs in the final year of Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s development.
- McKay suggests the team was too large, with the layoffs done to improve “focus”.
Towards the end of Dragon Age: The Veilguard‘s development, Electronic Arts laid off around 50 developers at BioWare. This included longtime writers on the series, such as Mary Kirby, who wrote Varric – a key character in the latest entry.
Now, in an interview with Bloomberg, BioWare head Gary McKay says that these layoffs were done to improve “focus”, and suggests that the team was too large. This is despite the studio having, at the time, both a Dragon Age and Mass Effect sequel to contend with, as both of its main RPG franchises had been dormant for years.
BioWare Boss Explains 2023 Layoffs
“When you have a really large team, you’re always compelled to keep everybody busy all the time,” McKay tells Bloomberg. “When you have a smaller team, you have the right people in the right roles at the right time, some incredible momentum is gained at that point.”
He also says that the layoffs were “all about focus at that time”. He did not comment on any of the individuals who were laid off.
BioWare fans were quick to notice some familiar names amongst those who lost their jobs. Mary Kirby is well known for writing Varric, who quickly became the face of the series after being a popular companion in Dragon Age 2. Before being laid off, she wrote for Varric in The Veilguard, while also writing the new companion, Lucanis. Lukas Kristjanson was also included in these layoffs, after being with the company for almost 30 years, writing for both Dragon Age 2 and Inquisition.
Now, a year after these layoffs, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has launched. While we don’t have sales figures just yet, PC player data suggests that it’s performing well. If so, it’s a much-needed comeback for BioWare, after its previous two games, Mass Effect: Andromeda and Anthem, were such high-profile failures.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is out now, available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the long-awaited fourth game in the fantasy RPG series from BioWare formerly known as Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. A direct sequel to Inquisition, it focuses on red lyrium and Solas, the aforementioned Dread Wolf.