The deal between Electronic Arts and Bioware/Pandemic is finally official and in the books. This means that anything coming from Bioware/Pandemic in the future will carry the eminent EA logo. With this deal finalized, it fills in the RPG/Action gaps that EA previously was weak in.
So what of the previous owners/founders of Bioware and Pandemic? Well their positions were also given as well. Bioware creators Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk are VPs of EA as well as co-general managers at Bioware. This fate also remained the same for Josh Resnick and Andrew Goldman, Pandemic Studios creators as they to, are named VPs of EA and co-general managers of Pandemic.
This deal means something to PlayStation 3 fans as it could give path for titles such as the rumored Star Wars MMO to come onto the PS3 platform. Bioware has been known for their quality RPGs in the past but because of their deals with Microsoft, the PlayStation 2 never got a chance to feature games like KOTOR and Jade Empire. Now under the hands of EA, a company known for their multiplatform strategy, Microsoft might just have to begin sharing some of their favorite toys with Sony.
"Our new EA partnership is already proving to be both positive and productive," said Resnick in a statement. "Pandemic Studios prides itself upon its creative independence while being the best place for top industry talent to work. These values continue to be upheld by all levels of EA and we couldn’t be more excited about the future of our studio and our games."
Ray Muzyka also added:
"EA has shown great respect for the creative integrity of our studios and BioWare’s core values of quality in our workplace, quality in our products, and entrepreneurship. Operating as a city-state within the larger EA studio family, our talented teams at BioWare Edmonton and BioWare Austin are empowered to continue delivering powerful emotional experiences through our story-driven games."
So, we shall see where this leads.