EA CEO Andrew Wilson attributed the financial underperformance of Dragon Age: The Veilguard to its failure to resonate with a broad audience. Following the game's disappointing sales, which fell nearly 50% short of projections, EA restructured BioWare, the game's developer, to focus solely on Mass Effect 5. This restructuring resulted in some Veilguard team members transitioning to other EA projects.
IGN previously documented Dragon Age: The Veilguard's development challenges, including layoffs and the departure of key personnel. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier cited BioWare staff who described the game's completion as a miracle, given EA's initial push for live-service elements, later reversed.
During an investor call, Wilson suggested that future role-playing games require shared-world features and deeper engagement alongside high-quality narratives to expand beyond their core audience. He acknowledged the game's positive critical reception and strong reviews from players but emphasized its limited appeal in a competitive market. This suggests that Wilson believes incorporating shared-world features and increased engagement could have improved sales, a perspective complicated by EA's prior decision to significantly restructure the Dragon Age development, shifting from a planned multiplayer game to a single-player RPG.
This assessment has drawn criticism from fans who point to the success of recent single-player RPGs like Larian's Baldur's Gate 3, suggesting EA may have drawn the wrong conclusions. The future of the Dragon Age franchise remains uncertain.
EA CFO Stuart Canfield further elaborated on the BioWare restructuring, noting the reduction in studio size from approximately 200 to fewer than 100 employees. He highlighted the shifting industry landscape and the importance of resource allocation towards high-potential opportunities.
It's important to note that single-player games represent a small fraction of EA's overall revenue, which heavily relies on live-service titles (74% in the past year), with Ultimate Team being a major contributor. Other live-service games like Apex Legends and The Sims, as well as upcoming titles such as Skate and the next Battlefield, are expected to follow a similar model.
