Electronic Arts (EA) is reducing its global workforce by 3%, or about 400 jobs, and shutting down BioWare, the 31-year-old studio behind the Mass Effect series.
The cuts, announced yesterday, are the first major changes at EA since the gaming giant went private in a massive, $55 billion leveraged buyout finalized in September by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake, and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners.
The deal put roughly $18 billion in debt on EA’s books, requiring hefty annual interest payments. Company leaders told investors they planned to cut up to $700 million in annual R&D and operational costs to finance the payments.
Redwood City, Calif.-based EA is known globally as the maker of Battlefield, The Sims, Madden, and other popular titles.
The gaming industry has suffered massive job losses since 2022 as it corrects for COVID-era overexpansion and grapples with skyrocketing production costs, among other factors. There have been an estimated 12,144 layoffs across 161 gaming companies in 2026 alone, according to journalist Mike Straw.
A survey from the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in June revealed that a staggering one-third of all video game professionals in the U.S. have been laid off in the past two years.
And the industry could face even more turbulence to come: Reports this week suggest Xbox may have three rounds of cuts in store in the coming months. In July, the CEO of Microsoft’s Xbox division said the company was “resetting Xbox” and would cut 3,200 employees throughout fiscal 2027. That’s after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had assured in an internal Q&A that the company was “long on gaming” in March amid rumors of sunsetting Xbox completely.
The widespread gaming industry layoffs—along with often punishing working conditions—have prompted calls for unionization in the gaming business, including a recent organizing campaign by the Communications Workers of America (CWA).
In an email to staff yesterday, EA’s chief studios officer Cam Weber and chief operating officer David Tinson said they have decided to refocus the company on three “strategic priorities”: “saying no to some things we’re passionate about” to focus on what’s already successful, expanding in underserved markets like Asia, and “creat[ing] entirely new ways for fans to engage with” sports.
EA also said it intends to “invest heavily” in the Apex Legends franchise and will bring together its Respawn and DICE studios to collaborate on an unannounced project (widely reported to be Star Wars: Battlefront 3).
