October 23, 2026

Electronic Arts is closing BioWare, the legendary RPG studio behind Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Baldur’s Gate and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, after more than three decades. The closure also cancels the next Mass Effect game, as EA reportedly cuts 400 jobs company-wide, including roughly 50 at BioWare. The decision follows EA’s $55 billion buyout and a series of disappointing releases, including Anthem and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, as the publisher shifts its focus toward fewer major projects.

Game marketing expert Chris Zukowski analyzed all 7,240 games in October’s Steam Next Fest, finding participation jumped 65.2% from June. While roughly 35% of lower-ranked games disclosed generative AI use, only 8% of the top 25 did. The study also found that games with larger existing audiences generally attracted more demo players, while RPGs, strategy and crafting games dominated engagement. The findings suggest AI-heavy games may be flooding the festival without necessarily outperforming established indies.

Bing Gordon, who helped shape Electronic Arts, The Sims, Need for Speed and Zynga, reflects on more than 40 years in the games industry alongside his daughter Chloe Gordon. Drawing from their upcoming book Everybody Wins, the pair explore the principles behind successful games, including rewarding progression, meaningful social connections, satisfying gameplay loops and player retention. Gordon also discusses why established studios struggle to embrace new technologies and how lessons from game design have influenced companies like Amazon, Spotify and Duolingo.

UK indie developer HaZ Dulull of Beyond The Pixels has launched a £9.99 collectible Game Card Edition of retro arcade shooter Astro Burn. Each pack includes five randomized art cards, two stickers and a scratch-off download code, letting players install the game on PC or Mac without Steam, accounts or an internet connection. The idea came after meeting players at gaming events who wanted to buy the game but didn't use Steam. It's an alternative distribution approach designed to make indie games easier to discover, purchase and gift.

New research from Sensor Tower reveals that indie games selling over 500,000 copies in their first month jumped from 13 to 33, accounting for 43% of breakout launches, up from 24% a year earlier. Indie first-month sales more than doubled to 69.9 million copies, driven by hits like Meccha Chameleon, How to Fish and Slay the Spire 2. Meanwhile, 35 entirely new IPs crossed the 500,000-copy milestone, up from 19, suggesting original ideas are finding greater commercial success even as AAA franchises remain strong.

Gotcha Gotcha Games is bringing HD-2D-style worldbuilding to RPG Maker U2U with its new Perspective 2D (P2D) system, allowing developers to turn traditional pixel-art tiles into 3D environments without modeling experience. The standalone editor includes 100+ ready-made maps, lighting, fog, water effects, live playtesting and Luau-based plugins, while supporting assets from RPG Maker MV and MZ. A free map editor demo is available on Steam through November 16, letting creators experiment before the full toolkit launches.

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