Following recent layoffs at BioWare, which resulted in the departure of many key developers behind Dragon Age: The Veilguard, a former writer from the series has stepped forward to reassure fans, emphasizing that "DA isn't dead because it's yours now." This week, EA announced a restructuring of BioWare to solely focus on Mass Effect 5, causing some developers who worked on Dragon Age: The Veilguard to be reassigned to other EA studios, while others were laid off and are now seeking new opportunities.

The decision came after EA revealed that Dragon Age: The Veilguard had not met the company's expectations, engaging only 1.5 million players in its recent financial quarter—a figure significantly lower than projected. It remains unclear whether this number represents unit sales, as the game was also available through EA's Play Pro subscription service and a free trial via EA Play. This announcement, coupled with BioWare's restructuring and layoffs, has led to widespread concern among the Dragon Age community about the future of the series. Notably, there are no plans for DLC for The Veilguard, and BioWare's involvement with the game concluded with its last major update last week.

Amid these developments, Sheryl Chee, a senior writer on Dragon Age: The Veilguard who has transitioned to work on Iron Man at Motive, shared a message of hope on social media. Reflecting on the challenges faced by her team over the past two years, Chee expressed gratitude for her continued employment and offered words of encouragement to fans. Responding to a fan's lament about the series' apparent demise, Chee highlighted the enduring legacy of Dragon Age through fan-created content such as fiction and art, as well as the connections formed through the games.

Chee emphasized that while EA and BioWare may own the intellectual property, the ideas and inspiration behind Dragon Age belong to the fans. She quoted a line from Camus, "In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer," to illustrate the resilience and creativity of the fan community. Chee's message was further reinforced when a fan announced plans to write an alternate universe story inspired by Dragon Age, demonstrating the series' ongoing impact and the fans' role in keeping it alive.

The Dragon Age series began with Dragon Age: Origins in 2010, followed by Dragon Age 2 in 2011, and Dragon Age: Inquisition in 2014. The latest installment, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, took a decade to release. Former executive producer Mark Darrah, who left BioWare in 2020, disclosed that Dragon Age: Inquisition sold over 12 million copies, far exceeding EA's internal projections.

Despite these successes, the future of the Dragon Age series remains uncertain following BioWare's shift in focus to Mass Effect 5. EA has not officially declared Dragon Age dead, but the prospects for a new game in the series appear dim. Meanwhile, a dedicated "core team" at BioWare, led by veterans from the original Mass Effect trilogy, is actively developing the next Mass Effect game, with EA stating that the studio is staffed appropriately for this stage of development.