Several senior BioWare staff confirm exit from the studio

EA was tight-lipped about whether or not layoffs or downsizing were coming when it addressed the transfer of some BioWare staff to other teams.

Image via BioWare
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Members of BioWare have confirmed the end of their tenure at Electronic Arts. Earlier this week, it was reported that Electronic Arts didn’t need “full studio support” on Mass Effect 5 and would be moving extra team members over to new positions within the EA company, but some of those staff have recently reported that they’re no longer with BioWare or EA anymore.

Trick Weekes was among those that reported their exit from BioWare following yesterday’s news via their social media. Weekes served as a writer at BioWare for over 20 years, with work dating back to the original Mass Effect and continuing up to Mass Effect 5 until this point. Editor of 19 years at BioWare Karin West-Weekes also confirmed her departure, as well as longtime editor/writer Ryan Cormier, and Producer Jen Cheverie, who worked at the studio for 14 years. Other exits include editor Daniel Steed, senior product manager Lina Anderson, systems designer Michael Flamm, and UX designer Mad Bee, as reported by PC Gamer.

Electronic Arts originally addressed the situation with Mass Effect 5 and BioWare on January 29, 2025, earlier this week. There, BioWare General Manager Gary McKay said that “we don’t require support from the full studio. We have incredible talent here at BioWare, and so we have worked diligently over the past few months to match many of our colleagues with other teams at EA that had open roles that were a strong fit.”

Even so, neither McKay nor EA suggested layoffs or downsizing would be part of this process. Given words from various senior staff after the fact, it seems neither told the whole story at the time of the original statement, but it's also worth noting that just two weeks ago, Dragon Age: Veilguard director Corinne Busche left the studio. Either way, EA and BioWare have insisted they have the staff necessary to continue the work on Mass Effect 5. As we wait to see what comes of it, stay tuned for further updates on BioWare here at Shacknews.

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on BlueSky @JohnnyChugs.

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