What happened to you, BioWare? You used to be revered as THE RPG-making studio. Baldur’s Gate, Dragon Age, Mass Effect–these were groundbreaking and award-winning titles that made BioWare a household name. Gamers flocked to each new release and indie studios aspired to your greatness.
And then it all fell apart. You got bought out by EA in 2009, and while you were able to hang on for over a decade with sequels like Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Inquisition, nobody survives under EA’s capitalist rule for long. Everything EA touches eventually turns to garbage, and BioWare is no different.
The first signs of trouble came from Mass Effect Andromeda, a game rushed out in a half-finished state. But it was Anthem that showed us all how far the mighty BioWare had fallen. Anthem was–and still is–an unmitigated disaster for the amount of time and money invested into its development. A game more concerned with microtransactions than storytelling, Anthem showed that the once-great BioWare was no more.
Former BioWare employees have been fleeing the company for the past year. Some of them have found homes in new studios, but one new studio just might be BioWare reborn.
A New BioWare Born From The Old
It’s called Archetype Entertainment, a developer founded last year in Austin, Texas, right next door to one of BioWare’s satellite studios. The connection to BioWare doesn’t end there, either. Archetype was founded by former BioWare lead designer James Ohlen, the guy who had his hand on everything BioWare made up until his departure in 2018.
At the time, it was less of a departure and more of a retirement. Ohlen had gotten tired of marketers and corporate execs calling the shots, and he even refused some lucrative offers from other big-name studios to go work for them. At least, until Wizards of the Coast (the folks who make D&D and Magic: The Gathering) made Ohlen “an offer that was too good to refuse.”
What they were offering was complete freedom. Ohlen would found a brand new game studio with funding from Wizards of the Coast that would dedicate itself to making role-playing games the way BioWare used to make ‘em.
Archetype was founded in April of last year. Since then two more former BioWare employees have joined the team. Chad Robertson, former technical director and head of Anthem’s live services until his departure last November, will serve as the studio’s general manager, while Drew Karpyshyn has signed on as lead writer. Karpyshyn was the lead writer for all of BioWare’s biggest games, including Baldur’s Gate, KOTOR, Mass Effect, and Dragon Age.
Karpyshyn had a lot to say recently about Archetype Entertainment. “The feel in the studio reminds me of my early days at BioWare; I can feel the magic in the air,” wrote Karpyshyn on his personal website after accusing the current BioWare of becoming “too corporate.”
A New Generation Of Sci-Fi RPG
They might not be the only ones, either. Archetype is still hiring for a bunch of positions, including lead art director, lead level designer, lead technical animator, and senior character artist. With BioWare hemorrhaging talent, we can’t imagine it taking too long for those positions to be filled.
But what is Archetype making? According to Eurogamer, Archetype will make a brand new sci-fi RPG totally unrelated to Wizards’ D&D and Magic: The Gathering franchises. A general feel for whatever world they’re building can be found right on Archetype’s website thanks to the posted concept art.
We’ll likely have to wait some time for Archetype to make any kind of announcement. They’ve literally just moved into their new office and are still hiring key positions, after all. But given the people in charge, we’re very interested to see what this new BioWare comes up with.
