BioWare Co-Founders Retire

[daibakuha]

What conspiracy theories? No post has yet said "only crap is coming now" at the time of your post.

The company's co-founders are leaving and another company owns what is left. i.e: BioWare is now just a name, regardless of what games come next.

Have you read the responses? "RIP Bioware" "Only a shell of what you once were" "Now only a matter of time before it dies a slow and painful death"

Knock it off.

 

[Hoplon]

So, who wants to go to a bar and cry into our beers with me?

I'll even buy the first round

 

[General Vengeance]

This is what happens when you crawl into bed with EA. You completely fuck up a good company.

 

[SynapseHavok]

It's a sad day indeed.. BioWare is directly responsible for my addiction to RPG's Goodbye Greg & Ray..

I'm curious as to whether or not this will be a permanent retirement, I hope that they one day come back to gaming and enjoy making games once again.

 

[veloper]

What place did they still have within a company that nolonger wants to fund single player games?
This is the logical outcome.

 

[LiquidGrape]

This is what happens when you crawl into bed with EA. You completely fuck up a good company.

People conveniently fail to acknowledge that BioWare were well on their way to financial ruin after Jade Empire flopped, Origins languished in development hell and Mass Effect turned out not to be nearly the smash-hit it needed to be in order to justify the expense.
Not that I hold any real *love* for EA, but I think anyone who enjoyed Dragon Age: Origins and/or Mass Effect 2 could stand to give them (and naturally the Doctors who facilitated the deal) thanks for putting those games out there.

 

[Tortilla the Hun]

C'mon people, are we seriously going o turn these guys' departure into an EA bashing session? How about having a little decency. Let's all just reminisce in the fine times there was to be had while they were in the industry.

Ahh, good times. Good times...

Though I am curious what direction, if any, BioWare will have in the days to come.

 

[thespyisdead]

1: not really a surprise and

2: i would have done the same in their shoes!

in other words i am happy that the 2 guys leave now while they are sort of ahead of their game!

 

[Z of the Na'vi]

What conspiracy theories? No post has yet said "only crap is coming now" at the time of your post.

The company's co-founders are leaving and another company owns what is left. i.e: BioWare is now just a name, regardless of what games come next.

Have you read the responses? "RIP Bioware" "Only a shell of what you once were" "Now only a matter of time before it dies a slow and painful death"

Knock it off.

The original founders of Bioware are no longer a part of Bioware. The creative spark that drove the company to fruition in the first place doesn't exist as an integral cog of the company.

"Knock" what off, exactly? Being pessimistic about the future of Bioware and/or their games?

You have a lot to learn. Welcome to the Escapist.

 

[daibakuha]

The original founders of Bioware are no longer a part of Bioware. The creative spark that drove the company to fruition in the first place doesn't exist as an integral cog of the company.

"Knock" what off, exactly? Being pessimistic about the future of Bioware and/or their games?

You have a lot to learn. Welcome to the Escapist.

They really haven't been involved in any of the games made by Bioware since Baldur's Gate, so i really don't get the pessimism. It's sad to see them go, but this isn't a death knell or anything.

 

[INVALIDUSERNAME]

And just like that, BioWare is dead to me.

To see these guys go, after seeing how much passion and enthusiasm and excitement they had for the games they made and the industry, is really sad, but I hope they excell wherever life takes them.

But with them goes the heart and soul of what made BioWare a once-great colossus in the industry.

 

[purifico]

What conspiracy theories? No post has yet said "only crap is coming now" at the time of your post.

The company's co-founders are leaving and another company owns what is left. i.e: BioWare is now just a name, regardless of what games come next.

Have you read the responses? "RIP Bioware" "Only a shell of what you once were" "Now only a matter of time before it dies a slow and painful death"

Knock it off.

You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means.
I've seen not a single conspiracy theory in this thread yet, just people expressing their opinion that the future Bioware games will be not as good (let's put it that way) now that the heart and soul of the studio are gone. And those fears aren't completely baseless you know.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

Oh do grow up. Already with the conspiracy theories and cries for what darkness is to come?

I wish them both the very best in their new pursuits, and I thank them for their contribution to games. I think that's really all that needs to be said.

Welcome to the Escapist; just mentioning Bioware turns a thread into a pit of mean-spirited insults and childish tantrums.

Anyway, hopefully they do well in their new pursuits and can relax a bit. I do wonder who will step into their roles as Muzyka and Zeschuk were more businessmen than game designers (seriously they never actually designed or wrote most of Bioware's titles)

 

[Krantos]

If I drank I'd raise a glass to you guys.

Instead I'll just buy and play the original Baldur's Gate off GoG like I've been meaning to do for years.

I wish I had an appropriate song, but I can't think of one that sums up my feelings of bitter-sweet sorrow I have at this news. I wish them all the best, think fondly of the times they gave us, and feel the industry is just a little bit less bright to have them gone.

Best of luck to you, Doctors. You kicked ass.

 

[TheMadJack]

"Two wonderful decades working at BioWare and later EA was the result of that decision."

The way I read it is this:

"Two wonderful decades working at BioWare"

then

"and later EA was the result of that decision."

 

[DSK-]

I hope Bioware doesn't turn in to a bunch of "Yes" men with their departure. At the very least, not right away.

 

[tmande2nd]

"LEAVE BIOWAREA ALONE!!!!"
...no.

I can say what ever I want about it.
Yep just another sign that EA is eating Bioware from the inside to make some gutted RPG house.

 

[LiquidGrape]

What conspiracy theories? No post has yet said "only crap is coming now" at the time of your post.

The company's co-founders are leaving and another company owns what is left. i.e: BioWare is now just a name, regardless of what games come next.

I've seen not a single conspiracy theory in this thread yet, just people expressing their opinion that the future Bioware games will be not as good (let's put it that way) now that the heart and soul of the studio are gone. And those fears aren't completely baseless you know.

Your very own posts implied their leaving would have the immediate effect of BioWare becoming an unfeeling development automaton under the watchful eye of EvilArts or whatever. Whether you believe that is painting in broad strokes, your prerogative. But I've seen a lot of people inferring the strangest things in this thread so far.

Anyway, with regards to the alleged heart and soul of BioWare being gone; I absolutely think it's a shame that the Doctors retire from games. Absolutely I do. They built a great company and provided the framework for what is demonstrably a very creative environment for creative people. That said, to suggest the company is a "shell" purely because of their leaving is asinine. They haven't been directly involved in development for more than a decade, and many of the company's veterans remain.

But I guess somebody should tell Lukas Kristjanson [http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,6524/] that the studio he's been working for since the production of Baldur's Gate is dead. Obviously he didn't get the memo.

 

[i64ever]

EA is the devil.

 

[hobohazard]

Bioware was the studio that made me think of gaming as something that could be serious. Ill remember you as you were Bioware.