Following the news that development of BioWare’s free-to-play MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic would be shifting to a third-party studio, BioWare general manager Gary McKay has now confirmed some team members will lose their jobs as a result of the move.
Writing on the BioWare website, McKay explained that “most of the current team will be invited to accompany” Star Wars: The Old Republic as its development switches over to Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot studio Broadsword Online Games – a move EA previously said was necessary so BioWare could focus on its new Mass Effect and Dragon Age titles.
“Unfortunately,” McKay continued, “not every role will make the move. This is the hardest part of this transition, and these decisions were not made lightly.”
McKay insisted EA is “doing everything we can to support” those affected, and that the employees in question will “have an opportunity to find new roles within EA”. He did not, however, divulge the number of Star Wars: The Old Republic team members that would lose their jobs as a result of the move.