Dragon Age: The Veilguard Director Leaves BioWare

Corinne Busche, the director behind Dragon Age: The Veilguard, is reportedly set to depart from the EA-owned studio BioWare in the coming weeks. Eurogamer first reported this news, noting that Busche served as game director for Dragon Age: The Veilguard from February 2022 until its launch last year. IGN has reached out to EA for further comment on the matter.

Since its release in October of the previous year, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has faced scrutiny regarding its commercial success. However, Eurogamer stated that Busche's departure does not signal broader changes within the studio. Busche joined BioWare in 2019 following her tenure at Maxis, where she contributed to the design of systems for various The Sims projects. Her role in steering Dragon Age: The Veilguard to completion, especially during its final development years, was highlighted in IGN’s article, ‘How BioWare Finally Got Dragon Age to the Finish Line After a Tumultuous Decade,’ which chronicled the game's nearly decade-long development journey, including a significant shift from a multiplayer framework to a standalone single-player RPG.

Eurogamer clarified that Busche's exit from BioWare is not connected to Dragon Age: The Veilguard's market performance. EA has not yet disclosed whether the game met or exceeded sales expectations, with the company set to reveal its Q3 2025 financial results on February 4.

BioWare has confirmed that it will not be producing DLC for Dragon Age: The Veilguard and is instead focusing on Mass Effect 5, a project the studio has teased over the years but has not fully unveiled.

In August 2023, the same month as the release of Larian's highly successful Baldur’s Gate 3, BioWare laid off approximately 50 employees, including veteran narrative designer Mary Kirby, who had been with the company since the inception of Dragon Age. These layoffs were part of a broader internal restructuring at EA, which resulted in the company being divided into sports and other divisions. Rumors of BioWare's potential acquisition circulated during this period, and Star Wars: The Old Republic was transitioned to a third-party developer to allow BioWare to concentrate on Mass Effect and Dragon Age.

The journey of Dragon Age: The Veilguard continued with its reveal in 2024, which initially received negative feedback. This led to BioWare releasing an early gameplay teaser shortly afterward to address fan concerns. The decision to rename the game from Dreadwolf to The Veilguard also faced some criticism. Despite these initial setbacks, the game's reception improved over time.

With Busche's departure and the focus shifting to Mass Effect 5, fans of Dragon Age are left pondering whether BioWare will have the opportunity to develop another sequel in the series.