As Dragon Age Fans Fear the Death of the Series, One Former BioWare Developer Offers Words of Reassurance: 'Dragon Age Isn't Dead Because It's Yours Now'

Following layoffs at BioWare impacting key Dragon Age: The Veilguard developers, a former series writer offered reassurance to fans, stating, "DA isn't dead because it's yours now."

This week's EA restructuring prioritized Mass Effect 5, reassigning some Veilguard staff to other EA studios (Game Developer reported John Epler, Veilguard's creative director, joined Full Circle's Skate project). However, other developers were laid off.

This followed EA's announcement of Dragon Age: The Veilguard's underperformance. EA reported 1.5 million players during a recent quarter, significantly below projections (a nearly 50% shortfall). Importantly, EA didn't specify if this figure represented unit sales, considering the game's availability through EA Play Pro and a potential free trial included in the lower-tier EA Play subscription.

Regardless, the announcement, BioWare's restructuring, and layoffs fueled fan concerns about the series' future. No DLC is planned for The Veilguard, and BioWare's work concluded last week with what appeared to be a final major update.

However, Sheryl Chee, a senior writer on Dragon Age: The Veilguard who transitioned to Motive Studios to work on Iron Man, shared a message of hope on social media. She acknowledged the challenging two years, but emphasized her continued employment. Responding to fan concerns about Dragon Age's demise, she highlighted the power of fan contributions:

"But DA isn't dead. There's fic. There's art. There's the connections we made through the games and because of the games. Technically EA/BioWare owns the IP but you can't own an idea, no matter how much they want to. DA isn't dead because it's yours now.”

Chee further explained that fan-created content, such as AU stories, embodies the spirit of Dragon Age and demonstrates the series' enduring impact.

The Dragon Age franchise began with 2010's Dragon Age: Origins, followed by Dragon Age 2 (2011) and Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014). The Veilguard, released a decade later, faced significant challenges.

In September, former Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah (who left BioWare in 2020) revealed Dragon Age: Inquisition sold over 12 million copies, exceeding EA's internal projections.

While EA hasn't explicitly declared Dragon Age dead, the future of the series remains uncertain given BioWare's focus on Mass Effect 5. EA confirmed a dedicated team at BioWare is developing Mass Effect 5, led by veterans from the original trilogy. EA assured IGN that the studio is appropriately staffed for this project, although specific numbers weren't disclosed.