EA CEO: Dragon Age: The Veilguard Failed to Engage Broad Audience, Gamers Crave Shared-World Features

EA CEO Andrew Wilson has addressed the financial underperformance of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, stating that the game failed to "resonate with a broad enough audience." This statement comes in the wake of EA's decision to restructure Dragon Age developer BioWare to focus exclusively on Mass Effect 5, resulting in some team members being reassigned to other projects within EA studios.

The restructuring followed EA's announcement that Dragon Age: The Veilguard had not met the company's expectations, with the game engaging only 1.5 million players during its recent financial quarter—a figure nearly 50% below projections. IGN has documented various development challenges faced by The Veilguard, including layoffs and the departure of several project leads at different stages of production.

Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier noted that BioWare staff considered it a miracle that Dragon Age: The Veilguard was released as a complete game, especially after EA's initial push for a live-service model, which was later reversed.

During an investor-focused financial call, Wilson emphasized the need for role-playing games to incorporate "shared-world features and deeper engagement alongside high-quality narratives." He suggested that Dragon Age: The Veilguard might have achieved broader appeal with these elements. However, this stance seems at odds with EA's earlier decision to pivot Dragon Age from a multiplayer framework to a single-player RPG, as reported by IGN.

Fans have criticized EA for drawing the wrong conclusions from The Veilguard's performance, especially given the recent success of single-player RPGs like Larian's Baldur's Gate 3. With Dragon Age seemingly on indefinite hiatus, attention now turns to Mass Effect 5.

EA CFO Stuart Canfield discussed the company's decision to refocus BioWare on Mass Effect 5, which involved reducing the studio's size from 200 to less than 100 employees. He highlighted the evolving industry landscape and the necessity of reallocating resources to maximize potential opportunities.

It's important to note that single-player games constitute a small fraction of EA's revenue, with live service games accounting for 74% of the company's earnings over the past year. Titles like Ultimate Team, Apex Legends, and The Sims drive this revenue, and upcoming titles such as Skate and the next Battlefield are also expected to follow the live service model.