Report: Andromeda's poor reception sees Mass Effect put on hold
Bioware Montreal staff and resources focused elsewhere for now
A report from Kotaku has claimed that the Mass Effect IP has been "put on ice" for now, with the series reboot apparently stalling in favour of other projects.
Poor critical and consumer reception for the recently released Andromeda are being blamed for the hiatus. The first game to be lead by BioWare Montreal, rather than the Edmonton studio, Andromeda received luke-warm reviews and considerable consumer ridicule thanks to some unfortunate animation bugs, alongside disappointing gameplay and scripting.
BioWare Montreal has now apparently taken on the role of a support studio, according to Kotaku's sources. That means ongoing support for Andromeda, but also some assistance in preparing a new IP, codename Dylan, for an expected reveal at E3 next month. Several staff from BioWare Montreal have also been seconded to EA's other studio in the city: EA Motive, where they will work on the forthcoming Star Wars: Battlefront II.
BioWare Montreal studio director Yanick Roy issued a statement to press regarding the studio's situation and the future for the IP.
"Our teams at BioWare and across EA put in tremendous effort bringing Mass Effect Andromeda to players around the world. Even as BioWare continues to focus on the Mass Effect Andromeda community and live service, we are constantly looking at how we're prepared for the next experiences we will create.
"The teams in EA Worldwide Studios are packed with talent, and more than ever, we are driving collaboration between studios on key projects.
"With our BioWare and Motive teams sharing studio space in Montreal, we have BioWare team members joining Motive projects that are underway. We're also ramping up teams on other BioWare projects in development.
"There will be much more to come from BioWare in the years ahead."