Mass Effect Director Who Wrote Mass Effect 3’s Ending Closes New Studio Without Releasing a Single Game

Original Mass Effect trilogy director Casey Husdon announced that his new studio would close without releasing a single title. 

If you’re a super fan of the original three Mass Effect games then you’re probably familiar with their director, Casey Hudson. The former BioWare head honcho left the company in 2020 after the disastrous rollout of Anthem to start his own studio, eventually named Humanoid Origin. 

But the studio announced that it was closing its doors this week on its official LinkedIn page. 

A LinkedIn post in which Humanoid Origin announces that it will close without ever releasing a game – LinkedIn, Humanoid Origin

“Earlier today, we informed our staff that Humanoid Origin will be shutting down,” the post said. “Despite efforts to shield the studio from broader challenges in the industry, an unexpected shortfall of funding left us unable to sustain operations.”

The studio’s first project was slated to be a narrative driven sci-fi adventure game set in an original universe, which sounds a lot like Mass Effect. However, that game will never see the light of day.

“We’re heartbroken that we will not be able to bring our new science-fiction universe to completion,” the studio continued. “Our main concern at this time however is for our team, and we are committed to supporting them in their transition to new employment. In our time together, the team achieved incredible progress, and demonstrated that it’s possible to do amazing work while fostering a culture of fun and creativity. We thank them for their talent, courage, and friendship.”

A screenshot from Mass Effect Legendary Edition (2021), BioWare

Hudson is the man many blame for Mass Effect 3’s deeply unpopular ending, which ultimately needed free DLC to make any sense. Hudson and fellow developer Mac Walters reportedly locked themselves in a room to write the ending and never opened it up to peer review. 

Many remember the end of Mass Effect 3 as one of the biggest misfires in gaming history. A series built on a deep narrative and player choice ended with three ending options, none of which made sense or felt satisfying to players. It was so deeply unpopular that an “Indoctrination Theory” sprung up around the game that insinuated the entire ending was a hallucination brought on by Reaper Indoctrination. 

Yes, gamers hated the ending so much that it was more satisfying to believe it was all a dream. 

A screenshot from Mass Effect Legendary Edition (2021), BioWare

Hudson left BioWare in 2014 but returned a few years later as the studio’s general manager, where he oversaw the team creating Anthem. This was BioWare’s attempt at a co-op live service game and to say that it failed to resonate with players would be an understatement. The studio pulled the game’s live service features shortly after it dropped with a promise to revamp the title and re-release it.

That never happened and Hudson left the EA-owned studio soon after.

A screenshot from Mass Effect Legendary Edition (2021), BioWare

“When I became Studio GM a little over three years ago, our goal as a leadership team was to position our people and projects for long-term success,” he wrote back in 2020. “Now, as BioWare celebrates its 25th anniversary, the studio is poised for an exciting new era of amazing games. It’s an exciting time, both in terms of projects you’ve heard about, and some things not yet announced. Arriving at this point has been an opportunity for me to reflect on my own future, and 2020 has been a year that forced all of us to re-imagine how we think about work and life. For me, it’s been the realization that I still have tremendous energy to create, but also that I need to try something different. I’m not sure exactly what that is yet, but I know that I want to start by rediscovering my creative passion through more personal work.”

Why do you think the former Mass Effect Director couldn’t make a new game studio work? Were you looking forward to another sci-fi epic from Casey Hudson? Sound off and let us know your thoughts!