Anthem is their all-in. If it gets savaged and sells poorly, BioWare is done. Doesn't help that it appears to be designed as an obvious Destiny clone.
I'm a huge BioWare fanboy.
I think there's a very good chance they get shut down if the value of their brand continues to drop. It'd take years, but it's still very possible IMO.
Problem is, BioWare is losing what made them special. Trying to mold their games from rich adventures into generic crowd pleasers is what, ironically enough, is souring the opinions of their fan base. Well that and the myriad of other problems with Andromeda didn't help.
I hope Anthem is a return to form, but I'm pessimistic.
And years could be a very long time. People keep forgetting that Andromeda was made by an almost entirely new team in a new location by a new division of the company. Dragon Age 2 is the closest the main office has to a flop and I’m sure EA recognizes that that was their fault. If I’m a shareholder of EA, I’m very wary if Anthem fails but I don’t necessarily sell. If I’m a shareholder and EA closes Bioware I hope to god I can sell before it becomes well known because the stock value is going to plummet. EA can’t operate on the same policy they have with other studios. It’s far more likely that if they ever planned on closing the studio that it would happen very slowly. People would be moved, projects would be vague and be delayed, etc.
Honestly, no one is giving a good reason for EA to close Bioware after Anthem. It makes no sense business wise. Actually, it makes negative sense. The internet loves wonton speculation but in this case there is literally nothing to this other than saying “they could at some point.” Which can be said about everything, ever.
Andromeda being made by the B team still hurts the BioWare brand.
Also, let's be honest: the shareholders care about the money, not who within the company is making it.
I don't think this is crazy speculation after the same thing has happened to many of EA's big name studios. I'm not saying it's for sure or anything, but this is following a pattern.
The problem I foresee is that EA (like all the major publishers) is pushing for cash cows and, in doing so, they've slowly chipped away at what made people like developers like BioWare in the first place - the attention to details (like story, characters, and world building) and their ability to give you more than just game play. They don't need the BioWare name to pump out generic money makers with their IPs slapped on them like Andromeda was (okay a bit harsh - still liked the game but yikes what a jarring shift).
It hurts the brand but it doesn’t make it likely that the company is on the chopping block. And yes, shareholders care about money, but it’s not raw money. If that was the case, GM would be worth more than Teala. Closing a company with 1,000 employees that has been one of your most successful subsidiaries would shake considerably the confidence of shareholders.
It is speculation because EA, and really nobody, has ever shut down a studio like Bioware. There is no comparable. Bioware has been a cash cow for them. Mass Effect was very successful, Dragon Age is as well. SWTOR makes enough money that Disney allowed it to be the only piece of the EU to keep making new content. And right now, EA doesn’t have many studios they can rely on. EA Sports with FIFA and Madden, and Dice with Battlefield are their only consistent properties. They need a major, experienced studio like Bioware and they can’t really afford to start making new ones from scratch.
I'm by no means saying they will be shut down out of the blue, I'm just afraid of the slow march to the chopping block for them.
They can easily recover from recent bad karma, but the question in my mind is: will EA allow them, or will EA's demands push them into oblivion?
If you can't tell, I don't have the highest optimism for the current state of the AAA industry.
Anthem is their all-in. If it gets savaged and sells poorly, BioWare is done. Doesn't help that it appears to be designed as an obvious Destiny clone.
**** you EA... You only cared about ****ing dollar signs from MTX. **** you you pieces of ****.
EA: Closing Visceral Games an "Economic Decision" as Players Don't Like Linear Games As Much Today
I feel like this is just the next step on the never ending cycle of developers/publishers jumping on the latest trend and then being shocked when it falls apart.
Why is variety considered to be such a bad thing?
Because it doesn't make them money with MTX. It seems that EA is trying to make most of their money with as few IPs as possible with as many MTXs as possible. In this video, which is well worth the watch, it basically shows that half of the revenue for EA are MTX. So you can bet your ass that they are going to try to go at that harder and harder.
I mean, linear games could easily make money off of microtransactions, especially with multiplayer.
But yes, EA will continue to squeeze as much money as they can until there's nothing left, I agree....and I think they'll be surprised at how badly it turns out for them, if they aren't already.
Because it doesn't make them money with MTX. It seems that EA is trying to make most of their money with as few IPs as possible with as many MTXs as possible. In this video, which is well worth the watch, it basically shows that half of the revenue for EA are MTX. So you can bet your ass that they are going to try to go at that harder and harder.
With the article I put up earlier, wouldn't that mean that they don't intend Anthem to be single player or to not have a boat load of MTX? It's going to be a **** show...
I mean, linear games could easily make money off of microtransactions, especially with multiplayer.
But yes, EA will continue to squeeze as much money as they can until there's nothing left, I agree....and I think they'll be surprised at how badly it turns out for them, if they aren't already.