Former BioWare lead writer reads the runes on EA-Saudi deal and speculates that 'guns and football' are in, 'gay stuff' is out, and the venerable RPG studio may be for the chop

Mass Effect — (Image credit: Electronic Arts)

The rumours have been swirling for a while, before today brought a major industry announcement: EA has struck a $55 billion deal to go private in a Saudi-backed buyout. It's the biggest leveraged buyout in history, meaning that the new EA is instantly saddled with $20 billion of debt, and will face intense pressure to crank those profits. And it's also the latest step in the Saudi Arabian Investment Fund's mission to "sportswash" the brutal regime, by using its influence and ubiquity across entertainment industries to distract from some of the world's most appalling human rights abuses.

As the crack team at PCG towers discussed the deal, one line stuck with me: "I wouldn't want to be sitting in a BioWare chair right now." The vibes around one of the all-time great RPG studios have not been good in recent years, and the fairly decent Dragon Age: The Veilguard didn't persuade anyone that the studio is capable of surpassing contemporary greats like Baldur's Gate 3 or Disco Elysium. Early this year, the studio was apparently cut to the bone in a round of layoffs, though a new Mass Effect game remains in development. For now.

Manfred holding a lantern — (Image credit: Electronic Arts)

Weekes was one of those laid off at the start of the year and so can afford to be frank, while anyone still at BioWare will no doubt be deleting all social media apps lest temptation win out.

As for the fans? A quick look at the Mass Effect subreddit shows the top thread on the acquisition is called simply "It's over, Commander", with seemingly every fan of the series bracing for bad news. The only slight notes of positivity are those who think EA might sell BioWare but, honestly, who's lining up to buy a AAA studio that hasn't had a major hit since arguably Mass Effect 3?

The EA-Saudi deal was only announced today, and we're going to be watching the fallout from this for years to come. It doesn't bode well for fans of any EA series, really. But for BioWare especially, this could be existential.

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Rich is a games journalist with 15 years' experience, beginning his career on Edge magazine before working for a wide range of outlets, including Ars Technica, Eurogamer, GamesRadar+, Gamespot, the Guardian, IGN, the New Statesman, Polygon, and Vice. He was the editor of Kotaku UK, the UK arm of Kotaku, for three years before joining PC Gamer. He is the author of a Brief History of Video Games, a full history of the medium, which the Midwest Book Review described as "[a] must-read for serious minded game historians and curious video game connoisseurs alike."