Comment on Inside the 'Dragon Age' Debacle That Gutted EA's BioWare Studio
commander@lemmy.world 10 months ago
I don’t get EA/Bioware. Fantasy is consistently more popular than scifi. Inquisition was their best selling game. Yet DA was never treated like a heavyweight like Mass Effect. My expectations tanked when David Gaider left
Inquisition was their best selling game.
Was it? Even if it was, you have to consider the cost and time that goes into making it.
Also, where’s the post-game monetization? Like it or not, fantasy games made for smart people unfortunately are held to the same standard as sports games made for morons.
Looking through each series’ Wikipedia articles, it looks like Mass Effect sold about 50% more than Dragon Age 1 and 2. And that tracks with my experience. I know far more people who’ve played Mass Effect than Dragon Age, and I’ve never played Dragon Age myself.
I agree, Mass Effect was/is gaming pop culture at one point. Almost every gamer I know has played or at least very familiar with ME. That number is maybe 1/4th for DA.
Stovetop@lemmy.world 10 months ago
One factor might be just that Mass Effect came out first and was also Bioware’s last game before EA bought them.
The rest is just my opinion, but I do believe that Mass Effect simply told a better story (multicolored endings aside) and had a better cast of characters. Not to mention the fact that it was a single narrative across the three installments helped keep engagement up. And shooters were incredibly popular at that time.