The majority of BioWare’s games have been met with acclaim from critics, but the studio has struggled in recent years. WhileDragon Age: Inquisitionwas a big hit, earning numerous Game of the Year awards in 2014,Mass Effect: Andromedawas not nearly as well-received, and 2019’sAnthemwas a flop. BioWare had plans to reviveAnthem, but it abandoned those plans to focus on its other upcoming games. And nowAnthem’s game director, Jonathan Warner, has left the studio.
Warner has been with BioWare for about a decade, filling various roles in the company. As reported by GameSpot, Warner was a senior producer on thecritically-acclaimedMass Effect 3and also worked as a chief of staff. Prior to joining BioWare, Warner primarily worked on games for Disney, having a hand in a wide variety of titles based on Disney film franchises. This included titles likeCars 2andToy Story 3.
RELATED:Anthem 2.0 Has Been Officially Canceled
In his announcement, Warner didn’t reveal if he was going to stay in the video game industry or go on to do something completely different. He also didn’t indicate if thenegative reaction toAnthemor the cancellation ofAnthem 2.0had anything to do with his decision to leave the company. Warner did say, however, that he thinks that BioWare’s franchises are in good hands with the people currently working at the studio and is looking forward to play games like the newDragon AgeandMass Effecttitles.
WhileAnthemfailed to find an audience andMass Effect: Andromedawas not well-received by many fans, things are looking up for BioWare. Apparently,Dragon Age 4is ditching live-service elementsthat were planned to be in the game, with BioWare given free reign to make a traditional single-player RPG in line with previous games in theDragon Ageseries. Hopes are high for the newMass Effectgame as well, and so it will be interesting to see if these new titles are able to live up to the high bars set by their predecessors.
First up will beDragon Age 4, though all that’s been shown of the game so far are brief teaser trailers and concept art. A more substantial trailer has been released for thenewMass Effectgame, confirming details like the return of Liara T’Soni, though that game will be even farther out thanDragon Age. Regardless, BioWare fans should have a lot to look forward to in the near future.
Anthemis out for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
