The next Mass Effect game is still in the pre-production phase even if BioWare has been buzzing in the news lately with studio shake ups.

Amid changes at BioWare as the studio shifts its focus to Mass Effect 5, while shuffling some devs to other EA studios and reportedly laying some off, the project director of the upcoming sci-fi RPG has clarified that the game is "still in pre-production.

BioWare now has fewer than 100 employees after laying off “around two dozen” staffers and shifting others to different projects at EA, Bloomberg reports.

What’s left of BioWare, the renowned RPG powerhouse behind beloved franchises like Dragon Age, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and the original Baldur’s Gate games? It’s a hard question to answer in 2025 after multiple rounds of layoffs and restructurings as the studio pivots between the character-driven stories fans love and the live-service gaming models investors want.

The studio is said to have less than 100 active employees at the moment, which constitutes fewer than half of the BioWare staff levels reported in 2023. The drastic downsizing is a mix of layoffs and reshuffles, with company veterans such as Dragon Age lead writer Trick Weekes finding themselves out of a job.

The next Mass Effect project is still growing in size and isn't ready for the bulk of BioWare staff to jump aboard, former studio veteran Mark Darrah has said.

There is really no getting around the fact that BioWare is in dire straits at the moment, now at the end of a decade of three missed opportunities

According to IGN, "a number" of BioWare developers have been placed by EA into other equivalent roles within the company. Howeer, a smaller number of Dragon Age staff members are also seeing their positions shelved, and are being offered time to apply to other roles within the company (if they so wish).

Mass Effect 5’ is “still in pre-production”. Now that BioWare has finished work on ‘Dragon Age: The Veilguard’, many employees have moved over to the upcoming sci-fi RPG, though director Michael Gamble has now said ‘Mass Effect 5’ has not yet entered full-scale development.

BioWare is reportedly now down to fewer than 100 employees after a round of layoffs and staff exits following the release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard and a restructure to focus on the next Mass Effect game.