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After more than 30 years in the video game business, BioWare has announced it is closing down, so it’s time to look back on some of its most iconic RPGs.
When general audiences still believed video games were pure entertainment, lacking emotional depth or weight, BioWare pioneered a shift away from that notion. Of course, their games are engaging and fun, but what the studio is best known for is its stories. The characters you meet along the way. The bonds their community makes with each new wave of companions.
In an official blog post, BioWare announced that “after more than three decades of shared adventures” they will officially be shutting down shop.
“What generations of BioWare built together is something to celebrate and remember. These games became so much more because you played them, debated your choices, fell in love with the characters, and made these worlds your own.”
The post then thanked audiences and fans for “being the most meaningful part of our story.”
Personally, some of my greatest gaming memories are from BioWare titles, so this news isn’t just personally sad. It feels like a loss for the wider games industry. To make matters even worse, BioWare’s closure also halts production on Mass Effect 5.
As of now, parent company EA has made no official statement on whether a completely different team or studio will still make the hotly anticipated follow-up.
However, we must not despair. While the future of Dragon Age and Mass Effect may be uncertain, now is the perfect time to look back at the games that made BioWare one of the most beloved video game studios of the past 20 years.
Without further ado, here are seven of BioWare’s most iconic games.
7. Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn (2000)
Long before Baldur’s Gate 3 became a global phenomenon, BioWare had already created an epic Dungeons & Dragons experience with its second entry, so it’s no surprise this sequel remains one of the studio’s most slept-on hits. What makes it one of their best RPGs is the sheer scope it gives players. Shadows of Amn offers plenty of freedom to dive in, and its quests are far from linear, unfolding into complex adventures with multiple outcomes at every turn.
Like all of BioWare’s most iconic RPGs, it rewards curiosity, and a single throwaway dialogue option can flip the ending on its head when a storyline seems to have no good outcome. Among BioWare’s companion features across their games, Minsc and Jaheira stand out in this sequel for both their combat usefulness and their intriguing personal journeys.
By the end of Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn, it’s easy to see why this classic helped establish BioWare as one of the best RPG developers in the business.
6. Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014)
Dragon Age: Inquisition is one of BioWare’s most famous games, selling millions of copies at launch and still a title many return to. One of Inquisition’s biggest strengths is its cast. From the charming rogue Varric to the wonderfully complicated Solas, each companion brings their own personality, opinions and baggage. Building relationships with them is just as important as taking on the main quest, and some of the game’s best moments happen around the campfire rather than on the battlefield.
The world is also enormous, with ancient ruins, political intrigue, dragons to hunt, and plenty of side quests to get lost in. While the open-world design can occasionally feel a little overwhelming, the freedom to explore Thedas at your own pace makes the adventure feel truly epic.
And with its sweeping story, memorable characters, and difficult choices, Dragon Age: Inquisition remains one of BioWare’s most ambitious achievements.
5. Mass Effect (2007)
It may not be the best Mass Effect game, but that doesn’t make it any less iconic in BioWare’s legacy. After all, it was the gaming community’s first introduction to Commander Shepard, Garrus Vakarian and the Reaper Threat. While most RPGs tend to exist in the realm of Fantasy, BioWare challenged the status quo by giving gamers a fully fledged space opera with lore that rivals Star Wars and Star Trek.
While the later entries in the Mass Effect series leaned more into the action-RPG genre, you can spend almost 100 hours exploring in Mass Effect 1 and still not uncover everything. A fantastic score accompanies you as you explore and really makes you feel like a Commander in space.
The Paragon and Renegade dialogue options determine whether you end the game as a hero or more of a space pirate, but balancing the two always adds a bit of fun. After all, the council deserves to be hung up on at least once, right?
4. Dragon Age: Origins (2009)
If you love a classic fantasy RPG, you’ve likely played Dragon Age: Origins at least once. The first entry in the series, Origins captured a cinematic, dark tone rarely seen in previous BioWare titles. It’s got all the great beats you expect from a fantasy RPG. You pick a race, class, and background, and from there, the world is your oyster.
What really makes Dragon Age: Origins stand out is the combat. While I always play Origins like a classic fast-action game and try to avoid slowing down, the game lets you stop mid-battle to reset. From positioning your party members to queueing up spells, you have plenty of ways to navigate combat.
Last but not least, Dragon Age: Origins has plenty of iconic party members to keep you entertained throughout your travels. Morrigan and Alistair are standouts for many, but Leliana is an icon, too. Just don’t get on their bad side, or they will betray you…
3. Mass Effect 3 (2012)
Yes, the ending caused shockwaves across the fandom, but Mass Effect 3 is a true epic that cleverly wraps up the trilogy’s biggest story beats in spectacular fashion. With the Reaper Invasion finally arriving on Earth, Shepard is forced to unite the galaxy despite old tensions, Martin Sheen’s chain-smoking Illusive Man, and, of course, lots and lots of Reaper forces.
This third outing is about as emotional as it gets, and the consequences of her in-game choices have never felt more real in the trilogy. You can’t save them all, but you can still try your hardest, and with Garrus, Liara, and Tali by Shepard’s side, the Normandy does its best to protect all races. Some of the biggest highlights of this finale include the outcome of the Geth-Quarian conflict and the Krogan finally freeing themselves from the Genophage.
All in all, Mass Effect 3 is an epic conclusion to BioWare’s most beloved trilogy.
2. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
Before BioWare created their own epic sci-fi series in Mass Effect, they found fame by creating arguably the best Star Wars game of all time. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic didn’t just let gamers immerse themselves in a galaxy far, far away; it sent them back thousands of years before any of the original movies.
KOTOR doesn’t just let you dive into the Star Wars universe; it lets you shape the story and its outcome. How your character uses the Force directly impacts the story, combat and the larger world. If this wasn’t enough, the already epic narrative culminates in one of gaming’s most iconic twists. If you haven’t played this epic yet, I will not spoil anything. However, this is your official notice to return to the BioWare catalogue and play KOTOR.
1. Mass Effect 2 (2010)
Surely you saw this one coming? The Mass Effect trilogy holds a special place in many RPG fans’ hearts, but Mass Effect 2 is almost universally considered the best of the bunch, and it’s easy to see why. As Commander Shepard, you work for the dubious organisation Cerberus on a Suicide Mission into the Omega 4 Relay.
It takes a special team to face such unbelievable odds, and by the time the end credits roll, the Normandy SR-2 crew feels like one big, albeit dysfunctional, family. Mordian will forever hold a special place in my heart, you beautiful scientist, Salarian. To support an epic main quest, some of the best DLC content across the whole trilogy features in Mass Effect 2, with Liara’s ‘Lair of the Shadow Broker’ content a true treat.
As for legacies, BioWare’s crown jewel in Mass Effect 2 is exactly what made the studio so special to so many. It’s full of heart, laughter, high stakes and truly memorable characters. It’s not just BioWare’s best game; it’s one of the most iconic RPGs of all time.
Final Thoughts
BioWare’s closure is not just a loss for Mass Effect and Dragon Age fans, but for RPG lovers as a whole. After 30 years of delivering high-octane games filled with memorable companions and truly moving narratives, the gaming industry has lost something special.
Thankfully, Mass Effect fans can still look forward to the television show in development, as we can now confirm that despite BioWare’s closure, Amazon are still going ahead with the series. If you love BioWare but haven’t explored their full catalogue, hopefully some of the games mentioned above will make it onto your list in the coming months.
