The organizers and supporters of the growing #SaveMassEffect movement have two stated goals: Get EA to commit to funding more Mass Effect games, or sell or license the IP to another developer. There are more granular achievements already happening with the accumulation of more than 300,000 signatures on Change.org, but the main ambition is right there in the hashtag circulating like a virus online: fans want to save Mass Effect, but unfortunately anyone willing and legally able will need some seriously deep pockets, according to BioWare co-founder Trent Oster.
The cancelation of Mass Effect 5 is one of the great tragedies stemming from EA's abrupt closure of beloved RPG studio BioWare, but some people, including former Dragon Age lead Mark Darrah, have suggested EA could sell franchises and license out rights to series like Mass Effect so that they can continue under new leadership. Others have cast doubt on the idea, however, and even if EA were willing to sell, it sounds like there might not be many studios with the money to buy the IP and develop a new Mass Effect.
"The scary component of Mass Effect is the audience is going to want the best of 'AAA' development," Oster says on Twitter, seemingly in response to the #SaveMassEffect movement, which he recently threw his support behind. "Rough ballpark (based on contemporaries) is $200M+. That is a big number to commit up front. There has to be a bigger plan in place for the IP to make the math work."
I love seeing all the energy around #SaveMassEffect I think there is a still a great thesis for a well-funded RPG developer who can deliver. Makes me want to get some of the original band back together.November 4, 2026
As my colleague Jasmine Gould-Wilson points out, games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Fable are proof that IP can make triumphant comebacks in the right circumstances. Wizards of the Coast handed Larian the rights to the D&D IP to make Baldur's Gate 3 and Microsoft tapped Playground Games to make Fable after shutting down original developer Lionhead in 2016, but there's a big difference with Mass Effect, and it rhymes with electronic farts. EA is famous for sitting on long-dormant IP instead of selling it, and it's given little indication that it's willing to make an exception in this case.
However, if EA were to sell the rights to Mass Effect, Oster reckons it wouldn't necessarily cost $200 million to make a new game in the series, provided the IP winds up in the right hands. "That said, I think it can be done well for less than that amount with a disciplined approach and an experienced team," he says. Let the hopium begin.
