Electronic Arts' new owners – Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners, and Silver Lake – have completed a $55 billion (£43bn) acquisition of the publisher, raising doubts among current and former staff about the future of beloved franchises such as Mass Effect. Emmanuel Rosier, a former senior manager at EA now working at Newzoo, told PC Gamer he expects the new owners to prioritise sports and esports titles, leaving mid-tier IP like BioWare's under threat, and said he "will believe it when I see it" regarding a new Mass Effect game.

BioWare confirmed in November that a new Mass Effect title is in development, more than nine years after Mass Effect: Andromeda's poor reception dented confidence in the series, which began in 2007. Rosier warned that if the new investors "don't have that many feelings about the history of the portfolio," they are likely to make purely financial decisions about which projects to continue. The deal has also drawn criticism from EA staff over the involvement of Saudi Arabia's PIF, with employees quoted by Game Developer and Game File raising concerns about the kingdom's human rights record, including its treatment of LGBTQ people and the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and accusing the company of "sportswashing" through gaming investments.