Grand expansion plans for BioWare Montreal

BioWare is to double the size of its Montreal offices following the studio’s success with co-developing Mass Effect 2.

Electronic Arts wants the studio to become an autonomous studio – building its own games and employing about 150 people within three years.

BioWare Montreal opened last year and peaked at 27 staff. This year its workforce is expected to hit 55. For now, the group is working on the Mass Effect 3 project as it enters early production.

“Now that we’ve proven ourselves and shown that we can be successful, we’re taking the next step,” Montreal studio director Yanick Roy told CBC News.

“We’re also doubling our contribution to whatever happens next in the Mass Effect franchise.”

Eight employees joined the firm over the summer, with an estimated 20 job vacancies remaining.