http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9796120-7.html

EA bought out the private equity firm that owned Bioware and Pandemic studios for $860 million or so.
EA was already set to publish MERCENARIES 2, but BIOWARE's MASS EFFECT trilogy is set to be published by Microsoft Gam Studios.

Coming after Activision bought out Bizarre Creations and Square Enix said they *needed* western development partners it seems we're in for a wave of developer buyouts.

Gotta wonder who's next...
EPIC?

I hear Bungie's available. :)

I can't see Epic being bought up by anyone for some reason, and I know Bungie won't be since the whole reason they broke off from MS was to be independent.

&^#*&$^@*&#$^@*(&#$^#

I can't see Epic being bought up by anyone for some reason, and I know Bungie won't be since the whole reason they broke off from MS was to be independent.

Bungie can't be bought up by anyone unless Microsoft agrees. Microsoft still owns 45% of Bungie and has majority rights in the board room and financial decisions.

In an interview, Bioware said that they still plan to release all 3 Mass Effect games on the Xbox 360 (other platforms have not been discussed yet)

Wow, is Mass Effect 2 going to have EA Trax?

:: puts revolver into mouth ::

UGH.... thats horrible. Guess cross Mass effect off the list...

"Guess cross Mass effect off the list..."

Agreed. Instead of having a 50/50 chance of being a quality release as per Bioware's history, the game is now garuanteed to be rushed to meet the holiday deadline. Yay EA!

you guys aren't being serious are you?

Mass Effect won't be affected but maybe part 2/3 will be

Wow, is Mass Effect 2 going to have EA Trax?

:: puts revolver into mouth ::

"Guess cross Mass effect off the list..."

Agreed. Instead of having a 50/50 chance of being a quality release as per Bioware's history, the game is now garuanteed to be rushed to meet the holiday deadline. Yay EA!

Noooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

intardnet at it again. every site has people sayin the same garbage.

"you guys aren't being serious are you?

Mass Effect won't be affected but maybe part 2/3 will be"

I absolutely am serious. What I saw at PAX (6 weeks ago) of Mass Effect was pretty bad. The game is a mess. Mass Effect was already a "don't buy" for me if they actually hit their target of November. I was expecting (hoping for) a delay to be announced shortly so they could actually fix the game. This EA buyout ensures that it will be released in November as planned.

&^#*&$^@*&#$^@*(&#$^#
I second this statement.

I cannot wait to be playing mass Effect 2 and seeing ingame adds for Madden 2011!

So what does this news mean for KOTOR 3?

Hopefully, EA will learn a lesson from the MS/Bungie split. Meaning, they will allow the developers creative freedom and the latitude to make great games.

OK, I realize this will NEVER happen now that they are under the corporate umbrella and have shareholders to answer to but its OK to dream, right? :)

Regardless, I'm still looking forward to Mass Effect. I doubt this will impact the game but at least we know who to blame if the game sucks. :rolleyes:

intardnet at it again. every site has people sayin the same garbage.

So you think this announcement is a GOOD thing?

Not to be a total dork, but anyone remember what EA did to the Ultima franchise? This is bad news for Mass Effect and KOTOR.

Great. Now I'm going to lose the $5 I put down to preorder Mass Effect at Gamestop. After what EA did to me with Madden 08 (franchises regularly self-destructing after 3-5 seasons, with the Xbox hard locking and preventing games from being simulated), and then not putting out a fix, I am not buying more EA crap.

Great. Now I'm going to lose the $5 I put down to preorder Mass Effect at Gamestop. After what EA did to me with Madden 08 (franchises regularly self-destructing after 3-5 seasons, with the Xbox hard locking and preventing games from being simulated), and then not putting out a fix, I am not buying more EA crap.


You do realise that this won't happen until 2008...The game will be long out by then.

This is a real bummer since I was determined not to buy anymore EA products after the NFL licensing agreement. Mass Effect is still being published by Microsoft so nothing has changed there. What might be effect is the DLC content for the game and the pricing.

I do wonder what the publishing deal was for Mass Effect 2 and 3. If it is EA you can guarantee the games are coming out for PS3. You would also have to figure that the next KOTOR game is going to be multiplatform as well.

So what does this news mean for KOTOR 3?


That it won't be coded by Bioware if it *ever* comes out.
(KOTOR2 wasn't.)
Lucasfilm was the publisher for KOTOR and just as Activision didn't buy Bizarre Creations to let them do work for hire for other publishers, EA didn't buy Bioware to let them work on somebody else's IP.
They bought them for MASS EFFECT and the other RPG IPs they can cook up.
Funny thing, nobody seems to mind them buying Pandemic. ;-)
(I assume the $860 million cost was $600 for Bioware and $250 for Pandemic, right?)

Great. Now I'm going to lose the $5 I put down to preorder Mass Effect at Gamestop. After what EA did to me with Madden 08 (franchises regularly self-destructing after 3-5 seasons, with the Xbox hard locking and preventing games from being simulated), and then not putting out a fix, I am not buying more EA crap.

You won't be.
MASS EFFECT 1 is published by Microsoft game studios.
*They* decide is the game is release-worthy.
*They* decide if it needs to be delayed.
It is pretty late in the development cycle for a deal that doesn't close til january to have an impact.
The only impact would be that EA could take it to PC or PS3...in 2009. They haven't started coding the game so it would take over a year to get it running on PS even as a port (it does run on Unreal so it is doable). If they chose to go that way *and* they chose to make Bioware do the port (instead of farming it out), *then you would see an impact on the Mass Effect 2 schedule.

I have to agree that nothing good can come of this, but I don't think it is a given that bad things *will* come of this. It may be a purely neutral thing where Bioware just gets to staff up and the Mass Effect team keeps on doing Mass Effect. Whether for 360 or as multiplatform doesn't really matter. Cause Mass Effect 2 would not be coming before 2009-2010 anyway...
And by then things will be very different in the industry.

Not to be a total dork, but anyone remember what EA did to the Ultima franchise? This is bad news for Mass Effect and KOTOR.


I certainly remember. My fav rpg of all time.... withered away to nothing. Wing Commander was another one they successfully killed. Jerks.

"you guys aren't being serious are you?

Mass Effect won't be affected but maybe part 2/3 will be"

I absolutely am serious. What I saw at PAX (6 weeks ago) of Mass Effect was pretty bad. The game is a mess. Mass Effect was already a "don't buy" for me if they actually hit their target of November. I was expecting (hoping for) a delay to be announced shortly so they could actually fix the game. This EA buyout ensures that it will be released in November as planned.
Care to explain what's wrong with the game?

(I assume the $860 million cost was $600 for Bioware and $250 for Pandemic, right?)

$800M/$60M :)

But Pandemic is a good developer, just being mean.

$800M/$60M :)

But Pandemic is a good developer, just being mean.

Lol!
Of course, by picking up Pandemic EA is now at war with Venezuela. :D

Of course, by picking up Pandemic EA is now at war with Venezuela. :D

Finally a reason for everyone to get behind EA!

it kinda makes sense, EA is certainly a capitalist company :)

I wonder if there is an Anakin inside of the EA Darth Vader.
You know somewhere deep inside they are capable of using their own talents to create new IP instead of snatching up companies left and right.
Capitalism is ok but when it becomes nothing more than a game of monopoly, thats real sad.

I absolutely am serious. What I saw at PAX (6 weeks ago) of Mass Effect was pretty bad. The game is a mess. Mass Effect was already a "don't buy" for me if they actually hit their target of November. I was expecting (hoping for) a delay to be announced shortly so they could actually fix the game. This EA buyout ensures that it will be released in November as planned.

The Game Informer review has been leaked, and they gave it a 9.75 (same as Halo 3). Some quotes:

"Concept: One of the greatest science fiction stories ever told, and a new benchmark for video game storytelling"
"Graphics: Every second of gameplay offers the visual quality you have come to expect from Final Fantasy cutscenes"
"Sound: One of the most memorable and unique soundtracks in gaming. It's inspired by '80's sci-fi, yet sounds like nothing you've heard before. The game also features an amazing ensemble of voice actors"
"Playability: Fun and functional, but something always seems to be amiss with the AI and Balancing"
"Entertainment: An expansive quest (18 to 30 hours) that toys with your emotions and keeps you engaged"
"Reply Value: High"
"Mass Effect shares a similar design to Bioware's previous work on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire. However, by comparison, both of these remarkable games now seem like test runs."
"The gameplay is certainly fun, and it controls admirably, but it doesn't live up to the large stage the story sets or the standards you've come to expect from action games and RPGs"
"You'll want more from it, but by no means does it hold the experience back, nor does it make you wish you were playing something else. In fact, I think you'll agree that Mass Effect is one of video games' greatest treatures."
"It sounds like a perfect game. And it comes damn near close. The one thing that might turn a few people off is the combat, which has a lot of little nuisances that take a while to get used to. When they all come together the action is breathtaking."
"Bioware's epic also has the richly detailed environment of Gears of War, the deep exploration of Oblivion, and a fictional universe almost as compelling as Star Wars"
"Characters convey realistic emotions, their lip-syncing is perfect to the point that they don't seem like CG creations, and they all have little quirks that you attribute to being alive."
http://masseffect.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=589712&forum=104

So what does this news mean for KOTOR 3?

All-American Rejects or My Chemical Romance doing the music.

I wonder if there is an Anakin inside of the EA Darth Vader.
You know somewhere deep inside they are capable of using their own talents to create new IP instead of snatching up companies left and right.
Capitalism is ok but when it becomes nothing more than a game of monopoly, thats real sad.


EA is doing what they should be doing.
I'm not thrilled with them scarfing up Bioware but the way the game is played, this was the right move at the right time.
EA has no significant inhouse capability for RPGs and ME is clearly a Halo/Bioshock-caliber property.
As we're seeing of late, *story* is becoming crucial to the success of games.
Gameplay still matters, but story is the hook to making sales, especially in the core single-player genres (shooters, action, RPGs...)
If Bioware was available they had to grab it before Square Enix or (worse) Activision grabbed it. We are clearly in a *major* reshuffle of the industry because of the one-two-three punch of the transition to HD gaming, the changing of the guard in platform leadership, and the growing importance of online multi-player features.
EA's development process has been out of whack for a while; they've been living off Sports games and crappy movie licenses for quite a while and they themselves knew they needed new blood. The real test of this buyout is how they handle Bioware's clearly abundant creativity.
The smart thing to do would be to get the Bioware guys as an incubator to start creating multiple new IPs, even if they themselves can't code all of them. And if they can't, they should be used as an example of best practices for other coding groups in the EA empire.
What EA can't afford to do, having spent so much money on these studios, is to squeeze the talet and creativity out of them.
Big by itself isn't bad.
Big and clueless, however, is a deadly combination.
Especially in an age of transition like the industry is now going through...