Ex-BioWare Chief Slams EA Over Dragon Age: The Veilguard Team Mismanagement

Former Dragon Age series executive producer Mark Darrah states that he believes EA and BioWare failed to provide adequate support for his team in the early stages of Dragon Age: The Veilguard's development.

The veteran BioWare developer shared insights from his time working on the acclaimed fantasy RPG series in a recent video on his YouTube channel. He recounts events from 2017, a period Darrah describes as "the most consequential 12 months in BioWare's history." His account covers not only choices influencing the early development of last year's Dragon Age title but also how a shift in company culture coincided with the final development phase of Mass Effect: Andromeda.

The story begins in late 2016, when Darrah was reassigned to assist with the final stages of Andromeda's development. He recalls his "feeling at the time" was that the Dragon Age team felt "disrupted" and received "no substantial support from BioWare or EA." The intention was for Darrah to help complete Mass Effect, freeing up resources for the next Dragon Age, though this plan ultimately fell short.

"This marked the first instance of leadership discontinuity, where a project lead was pulled off to assist another project while their original team continued working," Darrah explained. "In the case of Mass Effect: Andromeda, I don't believe the impact on Dragon Age was massive. The duration was brief, but it established a problematic precedent. It's incredibly risky for a project to proceed while missing key leadership figures."

Mass Effect: Andromeda launched in March 2017 and, in Darrah's words, "it was not well-received." During this period, BioWare was adapting to a new corporate structure, reporting to EA leadership that was "intensely focused" on its projects and roadmaps. Darrah describes this shift as significant, noting that the new studio heads showed little interest in continuing Mass Effect due to its troubled launch. However, he felt Dragon Age still wasn't receiving the necessary support even after Andromeda was completed.

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The former BioWare lead recalls expressing his concerns to current EA CEO Andrew Wilson and former executive Patrick Söderlund, receiving assurances about Dragon Age's importance to the company. Though EA provided limited resources to maintain the studio's work in summer 2017, Darrah and the BioWare team were informed that studio veteran Casey Hudson would be returning—a major organizational change communicated to staff without prior consultation.

"It's crucial to remember: I was the second most senior person at BioWare," Darrah stated. "Casey was interviewed, hired, and prepared for his return without any consultation with me. Would my involvement have altered the decision? Probably not, but there's a profound lack of respect in making a hire of this magnitude, a decision with such significant implications, without including the studio's second-highest ranking person in any capacity."

Darrah then anticipated that BioWare would pivot its focus toward Anthem. When he shared these concerns with EA leadership, he was told they remained committed to giving Dragon Age proper attention.

"As we now know, that's not what occurred at all," he added.

EA's investment in Anthem grew significantly until its own troubled launch in 2019, during which Darrah felt his trust in the company was "repeatedly tested" and "continually undermined." Resources were consistently diverted from what would become Dragon Age: The Veilguard throughout 2019, leading to what Darrah calls "fundamental" changes to the project's core vision.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard eventually launched in late 2024 as BioWare's latest major fantasy RPG. Despite positive critical reception (including a 9/10 score in our review), EA described its launch as disappointing, stating in February that it failed to "resonate with a wide enough audience." These remarks were later contested by former BioWare developers, with some suggesting the company should emulate the approach of Baldur's Gate 3 developer Larian Studios.

Numerous Dragon Age developers were laid off this past January as the studio reallocated its focus back to Mass Effect 5.