Key Takeaways
- • Avi Lewis, leader of Canada's New Democratic Party, called on the Canadian government to provide federal funding so BioWare employees can buy the Edmonton-based studio back from Electronic Arts and resume work on Mass Effect.
- • Lewis attributes BioWare's closure to EA's acquisition by a consortium including Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake Partners, and Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners, which closed in August.
- • The proposal has no formal policy standing: Kotaku notes Lewis holds no institutional power to advance it, and the piece characterizes the post as political messaging.
- • The closure ends a roughly 30-year run for BioWare as a staple of Canadian game development, and the cancelled Mass Effect: Universe project was among the casualties.
Summary
Avi Lewis, leader of the New Democratic Party in Canada, has publicly responded to the closure of BioWare, the Edmonton-based developer behind the Mass Effect franchise and a fixture of Canadian game development for about 30 years. According to Kotaku, Lewis posted on his social media accounts that the Canadian government should step in to help BioWare's employees acquire and run the studio.
Lewis rejected speculation that the closure was tied to Dragon Age: The Veilguard's non-binary character, arguing instead that the underlying cause is EA's ownership structure. EA was acquired in August by a group including the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake Partners, and Affinity Partners, the investment firm associated with Jared Kushner. Lewis argued that private equity ownership prioritizes short-term profit over long-term development and warned that BioWare is likely one of several casualties to come.
Lewis proposed that BioWare's developers be given the first opportunity, backed by federal support, to purchase the studio and continue work on Mass Effect: Universe, a project that has since been cancelled. He also argued that Canada should keep private equity out of its game industry. Kotaku's commentary is skeptical, noting that Lewis lacks the institutional authority to advance such a move and that statements of this kind often serve as low-cost public positioning. The article adds that a sale to a different publisher that allowed BioWare to operate independently would also be preferable to the current outcome.
Lewis rejected speculation that the closure was tied to Dragon Age: The Veilguard's non-binary character, arguing instead that the underlying cause is EA's ownership structure. EA was acquired in August by a group including the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake Partners, and Affinity Partners, the investment firm associated with Jared Kushner. Lewis argued that private equity ownership prioritizes short-term profit over long-term development and warned that BioWare is likely one of several casualties to come.
Lewis proposed that BioWare's developers be given the first opportunity, backed by federal support, to purchase the studio and continue work on Mass Effect: Universe, a project that has since been cancelled. He also argued that Canada should keep private equity out of its game industry. Kotaku's commentary is skeptical, noting that Lewis lacks the institutional authority to advance such a move and that statements of this kind often serve as low-cost public positioning. The article adds that a sale to a different publisher that allowed BioWare to operate independently would also be preferable to the current outcome.
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