Bioware

Remember when BioWare teased a little trailer at the Game Awards in December last year? That almost seemed like a lifetime ago. We got a glimpse of Solas – the much misunderstood hero turn villain in the series’s last installment Dragon Age: Inquisition. Well that was way back in 2014, and now five years on, it’s beginning to feel like a drag. Fans and players want to know where the story goes, and because the narrative has been so good in the trilogy so far (gameplay not so much), it’s only inevitable that folks would be craving for more. Furthermore, developers BioWare are not having a good 2019. Anthem has made the news for all the wrong reasons, and one might suspect that the studio is buckling under that negativity. So please BioWare, here’s why we need the next Dragon Age before it’s too late. Or, give it to another studio worthy of completing the saga. We Want To See Tevinter Let’s face it – we all adore Dorian Pavus as a companion … [Read more...] about Dear BioWare: Gives Us The Next Dragon Age Before It’s Too Late

While this isn’t exactly a MMO-related post, I’ll never turn down a chance to write about one of my favorite gaming companies, Bioware. Not only are they the makers of Mass Effect 2 (which launches tomorrow so expect to see many posts about the adventures of my FemShepard in the near future), they are also the developers behind the highly anticipated MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic. Through their story-driven RPGs, Bioware has brought us some of the most memorable characters in gaming…including our favorite in-game love interests. True to tradition, it is said that SW:TOR will have romanceable companions, and Mass Effect 2 also has a number of characters confirmed as romance options, available for both male and female Shepards. Being a huge fan of Bioware romance arcs, you can bet your ass I’ll be macking on at least one person aboard the SSV Normandy. So on this eve of the Mass Effect 2 release, without further ado I present to you this post in honor of my … [Read more...] about A Post Dedicated to my Bioware Boyfriends

The only constants in life are death and taxes. The only constants in the gaming industry are EA (or a subsidiary) creating its own PR nightmare and then making the situation worse in response. If you’ve been following the tale of Anthem and its alleged six year development cycle, today’s investigative piece by Kotaku’s Jason Schreier may not be that surprising to you. Titled “How Bioware’s Anthem Went Wrong,” Schreier talks to no less than 19 ex-Bioware employees who had been involved in the development of the game. The story is a tale of ineffective leadership, understaffed teams, and various departments either unwilling or unable to work together to put a cohesive and thought out plan together. While EA may tout that the game has been in the works for six years, according to employees the majority of the game was built in the last 12-16 months. Bioware responded with a very stern letter to the public addressing the article. The response is quite … [Read more...] about [NM] Kotaku Investigates Bioware, Bioware Makes It Worse

Everybody loves to dump on EA for wrecking companies like BioWare and escalating microtransactions and lockboxes to ludicrous heights, but is it warranted? Kotaku recently spoke to former BioWare studio boss Aaryn Flynn for the skinny. “I think there’s this perspective among gamers – angry gamers – that EA comes along and buys studios and ruins them, or EA is forcing microtransactions,” Kotaku suggests. But Flynn isn’t having any. “I think they are a great company to be a part of because they care very much about the creative process – they care about that – so they want you to be successful, and they will do whatever they can to help you be successful. Every company’s got constraints […] but they are excellent at giving creative freedom for sure.” Later, Flynn further says there’s “no mandate” in EA to buy up studios and shut them down, as this would be stupid, but that he’s certainly … [Read more...] about Former BioWare boss expounds on EA’s role in substudios and business models

While not going into any details about the progress of Anthem’s development and testing dates, BioWare nevertheless attempted to prime the pump for fans’ expectations this week. BioWare General Manager Casey Hudson wrote the first of apparently several upcoming posts on Monday in which he acknowledged the studio’s failures in delivering more stories for Mass Effect: Andromeda while also putting in a plug for a brighter future with Anthem. Hudson said that Andromeda’s DLC stumble led to BioWare “refocusing” its mission by not losing sight of the world, character, and storytelling in its games. “It’s in that spirit that we are working through production on Anthem,” Hudson said “a game designed to create a whole new world of story and character that you can experience with friends in an ongoing series of adventures. It will be unlike anything you’ve played, but if we do it right, it will feel very distinctly BioWare.” … [Read more...] about BioWare: Anthem will be ‘unlike anything you’ve played’