BioWare Co-Founder Explains the $200 Million Problem With Reviving Mass Effect

More than 300,000 fans signed a petition begging EA to keep Mass Effect from a quiet death in its vault. Casey Hudson, who directed the original trilogy, says he’s optimistic the series will live on. The leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party wants Ottawa to help BioWare’s laid-off developers buy the studio and run it themselves. And one of BioWare’s founders says he’s already running the numbers on a rescue.

The outcry has been voluminous and passionate in the wake of the sudden and shocking closure of BioWare.

But bringing back the beloved studio and franchise is going to take more than heart, signatures, and a politician’s social post. It’s also going to need $200 million or more, according to two of the people who built BioWare and an industry analyst.

That may not be possible. But there’s a less expensive route that could be.

“It’s nice to have these sorts of ideas, but who’s going to supply the $200 million pot of money to make the game?” said BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk. “That’s really, I think, the crux of it: Is it economically the best place for someone to invest? I know I sound harsh about it, but that’s the challenge.”

Read the rest of the story, which ran on Nov. 12, at 80.LV