EA Madrid office vandalized with Save Mass Effect graffiti after BioWare closure

An Electronic Arts office building in Madrid, Spain, was vandalized with spray-painted graffiti reading Save Mass Effect. IGN and Kotaku both reported that the graffiti appeared at the entrance and wall of the facility. Kotaku stated that a Reddit user posted images of the vandalism after discovering it while leaving a local movie theater. [1][2]

The incident comes shortly after publisher Electronic Arts closed developer BioWare and canceled its upcoming sci-fi project, known as Mass Effect: Universe or Mass Effect 5. Windows Central reported that Bloomberg claimed Electronic Arts chose to close BioWare and cancel the game to fund development for Star Wars: Battlefront 3. [1][3]

As FTMQ Gaming reported earlier, Electronic Arts closed the Edmonton-based studio and laid off an estimated 400 employees during an internal restructuring. Following the shutdown, fans launched campaigns including online petitions, fundraisers, and a billboard in Times Square, New York, while a Canadian politician proposed a government buyout to help former staff purchase the studio back from Electronic Arts. [3][7]