# EA reportedly closed BioWare because it was forced to choose between Mass Effect 5 and Star Wars Battlefront 3

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/ea-reportedly-closed-bioware-because-it-was-forced-to-choose-between-mass-effect-5-and-star-wars-battlefront-3/
- Published: 2026-11-04T10:59:49+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:36:49+00:00
- Original publisher: Eurogamer
- Original article: https://www.eurogamer.net/ea-closed-bioware-because-star-wars-battlefront-3
- Topics: Celebrity, Entertainment, Gaming

## Key points

- EA reportedly favoured Battlefront over Mass Effect.
- The projects could each have cost hundreds of millions.
- BioWare’s record and EA’s debt also shaped the decision.

## Summary

A new report says EA chose to prioritise a third Star Wars Battlefront over Mass Effect 5, a decision that contributed to BioWare’s closure and the cancellation of the new Mass Effect game. Executives reportedly viewed Battlefront as the less risky investment, although development on it had not begun.

EA was carrying $18 billion in debt after a leveraged buyout, and each project could have cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The report also cites BioWare’s recent commercial record and changes in EA’s leadership as factors. Mass Effect 5 had been planned for a setting 600 years after the Reaper war; Battlefront 2, released in 2017, struggled at first but improved after changes to the game.

## Coverage

- [Eurogamer: EA reportedly closed BioWare because it was forced to choose between Mass Effect 5 and Star Wars Battlefront 3](https://www.eurogamer.net/ea-closed-bioware-because-star-wars-battlefront-3)
- [Destructoid: Star Wars Battlefront 3 was reportedly the final nail in the coffin for BioWare and Mass Effect](https://www.destructoid.com/star-wars-battlefront-3-final-nail-coffin-bioware-mass-effect/)
- [Push Square: New Mass Effect Cancelled So EA Can Focus on Star Wars Battlefront 3](https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2026/10/new-mass-effect-cancelled-so-ea-can-focus-on-star-wars-battlefront-3)
- [Rock Paper Shotgun: EA reportedly backed Battlefront 3 over Mass Effect 5 before BioWare closure](https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/ea-execs-choosing-star-wars-battlefront-3-over-mass-effect-5-was-the-main-factor-in-biowares-demise-according-to-report)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.