With the $55 billion buyout of Electronic Arts ( EA ) officially done and dusted , certain internal studios are increasingly worried about what's coming next. The publisher previously stated there wouldn't be layoffs right away, but it took on a massive debt as part of this buyout, which Bloomberg's Jason Schreier reckons can only mean "mass layoffs," as the publisher is looking to save $700 million in annual costs.
EA will take on $18 billion in debt, putting it on the hook to pay $1.8 billion/year in interest. EA's annual EBITDA is around $1.5 billion, which should be enough to service the interest payments. But the publisher has told debt investors that it will cut $700 million in annual costs, including $170 million in "organizational efficiencies," per Bloomberg. In other words: mass layoffs.
Months ago, Rhys Elliott described that debt as a time-ticking bomb for EA studios, especially BioWare .
Expect layoffs, departures, and cuts, probably deep ones. Many of the cuts will happen outside of the money-making sports games (but nothing will be safe from the efficiency cuts). Anything non-service or slow-building will be on the chopping block first.
IP sales and studio divestitures are on the table. Many of the cost-cutters will ask themselves, “Why keep a $200 million RPG team when FIFA cards print cash?’’ Single-player studios like BioWare (Mass Effect) and Motive (Iron Man) are in most trouble. BioWare was arguably already in management’s crosshairs before this buyout. Add the studio’s LGBTQI+-friendly nature and its themes on human rights into the mix, and this could spell trouble.
Indeed, Insider Gaming also reported a while ago that folks at BioWare are extremely concerned. The studio already suffered layoffs in early 2025, reducing the Edmonton office to fewer than 100 employees as others were moved to different EA studios. The underwhelming launches of Mass Effect Andromeda, Anthem, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard were big factors, of course. Fans hoped they'd get one last shot, though, with the upcoming Mass Effect project that might feature a Krogan civil war .
On one hand, it would be surprising if they canceled it while Amazon Prime Video is developing a TV series adaptation . On the other hand, if the layoffs go as expected, there are not many better candidates.
About the author : With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.