‘Massive Effect’ Documentary Will Chronicle BioWare’s Rise and Final Days Under EA

Few game studios have left as deep a mark on role-playing games as BioWare. The Edmonton-based developer built its name on ‘Baldur’s Gate’, ‘Neverwinter Nights’, ‘Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic’, ‘Dragon Age’ and ‘Mass Effect’, a run that helped define the role-playing genre.

That legacy took a sharp turn this October, when EA announced it was closing BioWare and shutting down its Edmonton workspace. The publisher also cancelled early development on the next ‘Mass Effect‘ game, which had been announced in 2020. The closure came as part of a wider round of layoffs and cost-cutting, ending a run as an EA studio that began in 2007. In 2025, the studio had already been reduced to a small core team working on the next ‘Mass Effect’.

Now the story of that rise and fall is heading to the screen. A documentary titled ‘Massive Effect: The BioWare Story’ is in the works from Canada’s Fennessey Films and Score G Productions, with Super Channel behind it. Deadline broke the news in an exclusive report.

The film will trace how BioWare grew from a company founded in 1995 by three medical doctors, Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk and Augustine Yip, into a studio whose role-playing games have sold 100 million copies. It also promises an inside look at the studio’s final chapter. The title card shows a dragon silhouette and two figures standing before a burning planet.

Filming began 2 years ago, well before EA made its decision, so the production team already had access to the studio. That timing allowed the filmmakers to capture BioWare’s last days as news of the closure spread through the gaming world. The documentary is being planned for a major film festival run and a world premiere in 2027.

Writer and director Akash Sherman, whose previous work includes the feature ‘Clara’, has a personal connection to the subject. As Sherman told Deadline, “The BioWare founders are my hometown heroes.” He added that the studio’s golden era sparked something in him and in an entire generation, and that the recent closure turns the film into a profound valediction.

The documentary is produced by Shane Fennessey and Adam Scorgie, and their companies are also behind ‘Funny Money: The Dane Cook Story’, ‘Dolph: Unbreakable’ and ‘Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo’. Co-founders Muzyka and Zeschuk appear in the film, along with Yip, and they said the production team’s request for their blessing left them honored and deeply moved.

The lineup of participants also includes a long list of former BioWare developers. Among them are Casey Hudson, Mark Darrah, David Gaider, Drew Karpyshyn, Aaryn Flynn and Mac Walters. Jennifer Hale, who voices Commander Shepard, is on the list too, alongside Lucasfilm Games vice president Douglas Reilly, John Riccitiello and Geoff Keighley, the creator of The Game Awards.

The studio’s final years were turbulent. ‘Mass Effect: Andromeda’ and ‘Anthem’ underwhelmed some fans, and ‘Dragon Age: The Veilguard’, the studio’s last game, was better received by critics but spent a decade in development turmoil. EA said the game underperformed after its 2024 release.

EA cut around 400 jobs in the same round of layoffs, about 3% of its staff, including roughly 50 at BioWare. The cuts followed EA’s move to go private in a $55 billion buyout. In a letter to staff, EA’s COO David Tinson and chief studios officer Cam Weber said the company had taken a hard look at its business and would focus its investment on fewer large-scale projects. They called BioWare a legendary studio that helped define the role-playing genre and said the decision was not taken lightly.

The film is set to reach Canadian audiences through Super Channel, whose executive Kim Ball said the Edmonton-based company is proud to celebrate BioWare’s hometown story. No exact premiere date has been announced beyond the 2027 festival plans. The film’s official website describes the project as a story about people from all walks of life united by a shared goal.

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