BioWare
Encyclopedia
BioWare is a Canadian
video game developer
founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors
Ray Muzyka
, Greg Zeschuk
, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American
company Electronic Arts
. BioWare specializes in role-playing video game
s, and became famous for launching highly praised and successful licensed franchises, Baldur's Gate
, Neverwinter Nights
, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
. They proceeded to make several other successful games based on original IP
: Jade Empire
, Mass Effect, Dragon Age: Origins
, Mass Effect 2
and Dragon Age II
. They are currently working on two projects: Star Wars: The Old Republic
and Mass Effect 3
. Dragon Age III has been spoken of by BioWare, but has not been officially announced yet.
, the BioWare group consists of six studios: BioWare Edmonton, BioWare Austin, BioWare Mythic, BioWare Montreal, BioWare Ireland, and BioWare San Francisco (formerly EA2D). It comprises the RPG/MMO Group within Electronic Arts
, with Muzyka, EA Senior VP and the Group General Manager and Zeschuk EA VP and Group Creative Officer of the BioWare Group; co-founder/Doctor Yip left in early 1997 to return to medicine. Other senior leaders in the BioWare Group (RPG/MMO Group) of Electronic Arts
are Rob Denton (EA VP and Group Operations Officer of the BioWare Group), Patrick Buechner (EA VP and Group Marketing Officer of the BioWare Group), Gordon Walton and Rich Vogel (EA VPs and co-General Managers of BioWare Austin), Aaryn Flynn (EA VP and General Manager of BioWare Edmonton), Eugene Evans (EA VP and General Manager of BioWare Mythic, in Fairfax, Virginia), and Yanick Roy (Studio Director of BioWare Montreal).
BioWare was established in February 1995 by Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip, who had graduated together from medical school at the University of Alberta
. Its first game was released the following year. Originally, BioWare developed games exclusively for Interplay Entertainment
, including Shattered Steel
, the Baldur's Gate series
, and MDK2
. Neverwinter Nights
was originally to be published by Interplay, but the company lost the license of the game to Atari and part of their Dungeons & Dragons
license, to BioWare. After selling their D&D license to Atari, BioWare developed Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
and Jade Empire
. It had publishing relationships with Interplay Entertainment, Infogrames
/Atari, LucasArts
, and Microsoft
.
The next few years saw a number of changes in BioWare's corporate status. In November 2005, it was announced that BioWare and Pandemic Studios
(itself founded by former Activision
employees) would be joining forces, with private equity fund Elevation Partners
investing in the partnership. On October 11, 2007, however, it was announced that this new partnership (organized as VG Holding Corp) had been bought by Electronic Arts
. BioWare therefore became a unit of EA, but retained its own branding.
In 2007, BioWare released the science fiction RPG Mass Effect. The following year, BioWare released Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
on the Nintendo DS
, its first title for a handheld game console
. Near the end of 2009, BioWare released the fantasy RPG Dragon Age: Origins
, and in January 2010 Mass Effect 2
. Recently, EA announced that BioWare would be merged with Mythic Entertainment
, another division of EA, so that they could have all of their RPG development in one business unit.
BioWare is currently working on at least four further projects. The MMORPG
Star Wars: The Old Republic
will be based on BioWare's previous contribution to the Star Wars
franchise, and was announced on 21 October 2008, although BioWare had first mentioned an unspecified new collaboration with LucasArts
in October the previous year. The other projects are a sequel to Dragon Age: Origins, Mass Effect 3 and an additional project about which no details have yet been revealed.
The growth of the RPG/MMO Group as part of Electronic Arts in 2008+ has resulted in three additional studios being added to the BioWare Group outside BioWare's original home base in Edmonton. The first, located in Austin, Texas
and headed by industry veterans Gordon Walton
and Richard Vogel, was created to work on the Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG project. Both the studio and the project were announced on March 13, 2006. On March 2, 2009, BioWare announced it had opened a new studio in Montreal, Quebec to assist with existing projects as necessary. In 2009 Mythic Entertainment
, based in Fairfax, Virginia, became part of the RPG/MMO Group, later being renamed BioWare Mythic in early 2010.
Electronic Arts
announced on June 24, 2009, that they are restructuring their RPG and MMO games development into a new group that includes both Mythic Entertainment
and BioWare. This newly formed team (now called the BioWare Group) will be led by Ray Muzyka, co-founder and General Manager of BioWare. With this change, Muzyka becomes Group General Manager of the new RPG/MMO studio group. BioWare's other co-founder, Greg Zeschuk, will become Group Creative Officer for the new RPG/MMO studio group. Rob Denton will step up as General Manager of Mythic and report to Muzyka, later becoming Group Operations Officer of the new Group. BioWare's studios remain unchanged and continue to report to Muzyka.
The company announced that it would be opening up a new customer service office in Galway
, Ireland, in 2011.
The company was also a starting place for other Alberta
n game developers, such as being the former employer of the HermitWorks Entertainment staff. The group developed the well-received genre mixing game Space Trader
, which was developed under an art grant from the Canadian government.
, which was used as a core component for development of 2D
role-playing video game
s based on Dungeons & Dragons
, such as Baldur's Gate
and Icewind Dale. For their game Neverwinter Nights
, launched in 2002, BioWare developed the Aurora Engine, the basis for a number of successful 3D RPGs thereafter.
Neverwinter Nights shipped with a number of tools allowing users to create their own role-playing adventures for single and multiplayer online. The tools, using the Aurora Engine, have been adapted to many forms of gameplay and storytelling, with thousands of amateur and professional modules available on various web sites; some released for sale as premium content. Neverwinter Nights was a pioneering example of user-created game content commercially supported and distributed over the Internet
.
The Odyssey Engine
was developed for the game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
, which was based on the Aurora Engine. BioWare has recently developed the Eclipse Engine (a next generation RPG engine) for the game Dragon Age: Origins
.
After years of working with licensed content, particularly from the D&D world, BioWare began efforts to develop their own original, independent universes and franchises. Jade Empire
was a step in this direction, as are their current projects: the RPG series Mass Effect
for Xbox 360
and PC
, which utilizes the third version of the Unreal Engine
.
BioWare maintained a limited oversight on Obsidian Entertainment
's development of Neverwinter Nights 2
and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
.
successor to BioWare's earlier, 2D
game engine, called the Infinity Engine
. The engine allows for real-time
lighting and shadows, as well as surround sound
. The first game released using the Aurora Engine was Neverwinter Nights, and included an accompanying "Aurora toolset
" for users to create their own content. The sequel, Neverwinter Nights 2
, developed by Obsidian Entertainment
, features an updated version of BioWare's engine named the Electron engine. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (from Obsidian Entertainment) use an updated version of the Aurora Engine called the Odyssey Engine
. Aurora was also used by CD Projekt Red
in their game The Witcher, although the rendering engine was written from scratch.
Odyssey Engine:
Aurora Engine:
called the incident a "potentially dangerous precedent, where saying something inflammatory about a developer or publisher could result in the company revoking the player's right to play a game he or she lawfully acquired." When the story was later picked-up by several news websites, EA's Andrew Wong said the entire incident was actually an unforeseen glitch, and that the player's account had been reactivated.
The full list of awards can be found on their web site.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
video game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
Ray Muzyka
Ray Muzyka
Dr. Ray Muzyka is a Canadian entrepreneur. He is the CEO at BioWare Corp as well as a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts at BioWare's parent company Electronic Arts.-Career:Muzyka co-founded BioWare in...
, Greg Zeschuk
Greg Zeschuk
Dr. Gregory P. Zeschuk is a VP and Group Creative Officer at BioWare Corp. and Electronic Arts. He co-founded BioWare in 1995 with BioWare’s other co-founder and Group GM/CEO, Dr...
, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
company Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
. BioWare specializes in role-playing video game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
s, and became famous for launching highly praised and successful licensed franchises, Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate is a computer role-playing game developed by BioWare and released in 1998 by Interplay Entertainment. The game takes place in the Forgotten Realms, a high fantasy campaign setting, using modified Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition rules...
, Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial...
, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its...
. They proceeded to make several other successful games based on original IP
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
: Jade Empire
Jade Empire
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content...
, Mass Effect, Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
, Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010 and for PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011...
and Dragon Age II
Dragon Age II
Dragon Age II is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studios, and published by Electronic Arts. It is the second major game in BioWare's Dragon Age franchise...
. They are currently working on two projects: Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an...
and Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect 3 is an upcoming action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3...
. Dragon Age III has been spoken of by BioWare, but has not been officially announced yet.
, the BioWare group consists of six studios: BioWare Edmonton, BioWare Austin, BioWare Mythic, BioWare Montreal, BioWare Ireland, and BioWare San Francisco (formerly EA2D). It comprises the RPG/MMO Group within Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
, with Muzyka, EA Senior VP and the Group General Manager and Zeschuk EA VP and Group Creative Officer of the BioWare Group; co-founder/Doctor Yip left in early 1997 to return to medicine. Other senior leaders in the BioWare Group (RPG/MMO Group) of Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
are Rob Denton (EA VP and Group Operations Officer of the BioWare Group), Patrick Buechner (EA VP and Group Marketing Officer of the BioWare Group), Gordon Walton and Rich Vogel (EA VPs and co-General Managers of BioWare Austin), Aaryn Flynn (EA VP and General Manager of BioWare Edmonton), Eugene Evans (EA VP and General Manager of BioWare Mythic, in Fairfax, Virginia), and Yanick Roy (Studio Director of BioWare Montreal).
Company history
BioWare was established in February 1995 by Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip, who had graduated together from medical school at the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
. Its first game was released the following year. Originally, BioWare developed games exclusively for Interplay Entertainment
Interplay Entertainment
Interplay Entertainment Corporation is an American video game developer and publisher, founded in 1983 as Interplay Productions by Brian Fargo. The company had been a quality developer until they started publishing their own games in 1988, like Neuromancer and Battle Chess. The company was renamed...
, including Shattered Steel
Shattered Steel
Shattered Steel is an action game released in 1996 by BioWare for MS-DOS, and later ported to Mac OS by now-defunct Logicware. It is notable for the deformable terrain effects, and for being BioWare's first published game.-Story:...
, the Baldur's Gate series
Baldur's Gate (series)
Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also...
, and MDK2
MDK2
MDK2 is a video game and sequel to the third-person shooter, MDK. The original MDK was developed by Shiny Entertainment and released in 1997 by Interplay. The sequel was developed by BioWare....
. Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial...
was originally to be published by Interplay, but the company lost the license of the game to Atari and part of their Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
license, to BioWare. After selling their D&D license to Atari, BioWare developed Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its...
and Jade Empire
Jade Empire
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content...
. It had publishing relationships with Interplay Entertainment, Infogrames
Infogrames
Infogrames Entertainment SA was an international French holding company headquartered in Paris, France. It was the owner of Atari, Inc., headquartered in New York City, U.S. and Atari Europe. It was founded in 1983 by Bruno Bonnell and Christophe Sapet using the proceeds from an introductory...
/Atari, LucasArts
LucasArts
LucasArts Entertainment Company, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was once famous for its innovative line of graphic adventure games, the critical and commercial success of which peaked in the mid 1990s...
, and Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
.
The next few years saw a number of changes in BioWare's corporate status. In November 2005, it was announced that BioWare and Pandemic Studios
Pandemic Studios
Pandemic Studios was founded as an independent developer in 1998, it became an Electronic Arts-owned developer from 2007 to 2009, when it was officially closed. It was an Australian and American video game developer with offices in Brisbane, Australia and Los Angeles, California...
(itself founded by former Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
employees) would be joining forces, with private equity fund Elevation Partners
Elevation Partners
Elevation Partners is an American private equity firm that invests in intellectual property and media and entertainment companies. The firm has $1.9 billion of assets under management....
investing in the partnership. On October 11, 2007, however, it was announced that this new partnership (organized as VG Holding Corp) had been bought by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
. BioWare therefore became a unit of EA, but retained its own branding.
In 2007, BioWare released the science fiction RPG Mass Effect. The following year, BioWare released Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is a Nintendo DS console role-playing game based on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and developed by Canadian RPG developer BioWare as their first handheld video game project...
on the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
, its first title for a handheld game console
Handheld game console
A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic device with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are run on machines of small size allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place...
. Near the end of 2009, BioWare released the fantasy RPG Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
, and in January 2010 Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010 and for PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011...
. Recently, EA announced that BioWare would be merged with Mythic Entertainment
Mythic Entertainment
BioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
, another division of EA, so that they could have all of their RPG development in one business unit.
BioWare is currently working on at least four further projects. The MMORPG
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an...
will be based on BioWare's previous contribution to the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
franchise, and was announced on 21 October 2008, although BioWare had first mentioned an unspecified new collaboration with LucasArts
LucasArts
LucasArts Entertainment Company, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was once famous for its innovative line of graphic adventure games, the critical and commercial success of which peaked in the mid 1990s...
in October the previous year. The other projects are a sequel to Dragon Age: Origins, Mass Effect 3 and an additional project about which no details have yet been revealed.
The growth of the RPG/MMO Group as part of Electronic Arts in 2008+ has resulted in three additional studios being added to the BioWare Group outside BioWare's original home base in Edmonton. The first, located in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
and headed by industry veterans Gordon Walton
Gordon Walton
Gordon Walton, Jr. is an American video game developer and executive producer who has worked with many North American online game companies, from Maxis to Electronic Arts to Sony Online to Bioware...
and Richard Vogel, was created to work on the Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG project. Both the studio and the project were announced on March 13, 2006. On March 2, 2009, BioWare announced it had opened a new studio in Montreal, Quebec to assist with existing projects as necessary. In 2009 Mythic Entertainment
Mythic Entertainment
BioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
, based in Fairfax, Virginia, became part of the RPG/MMO Group, later being renamed BioWare Mythic in early 2010.
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
announced on June 24, 2009, that they are restructuring their RPG and MMO games development into a new group that includes both Mythic Entertainment
Mythic Entertainment
BioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
and BioWare. This newly formed team (now called the BioWare Group) will be led by Ray Muzyka, co-founder and General Manager of BioWare. With this change, Muzyka becomes Group General Manager of the new RPG/MMO studio group. BioWare's other co-founder, Greg Zeschuk, will become Group Creative Officer for the new RPG/MMO studio group. Rob Denton will step up as General Manager of Mythic and report to Muzyka, later becoming Group Operations Officer of the new Group. BioWare's studios remain unchanged and continue to report to Muzyka.
The company announced that it would be opening up a new customer service office in Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
, Ireland, in 2011.
The company was also a starting place for other Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
n game developers, such as being the former employer of the HermitWorks Entertainment staff. The group developed the well-received genre mixing game Space Trader
Space Trader
Space Trader is a video game developed by the Canadian developer HermitWorks Entertainment, for Windows XP, Mac OS X, Linux, and iPhone OS. It was released on July 25th, 2007. It started development in 2005, headed by Cameron Tofer and Marcia Tofer, both previously of Bioware, along with a group of...
, which was developed under an art grant from the Canadian government.
Games
| Title | Release year | Game engine | Platform(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shattered Steel Shattered Steel Shattered Steel is an action game released in 1996 by BioWare for MS-DOS, and later ported to Mac OS by now-defunct Logicware. It is notable for the deformable terrain effects, and for being BioWare's first published game.-Story:... |
1996 | DOS DOS DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related... , Mac OS Mac OS Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface... |
Some Interactive Preview discs were defective, rendering working copies very scarce for collectors and fans. | |
| Baldur's Gate Baldur's Gate Baldur's Gate is a computer role-playing game developed by BioWare and released in 1998 by Interplay Entertainment. The game takes place in the Forgotten Realms, a high fantasy campaign setting, using modified Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition rules... |
1998 | Infinity Engine Infinity Engine Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Mac OS Mac OS Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface... |
|
| Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast is a computer role-playing game in a high fantasy setting, developed by BioWare and published by Interplay in April 1999. Released as an expansion pack for Baldur's Gate from 1998, it adds about 20–30 hours of extra gameplay to the original game... |
1999 | Infinity Engine Infinity Engine Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Mac OS Mac OS Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface... |
Expansion pack to Baldur's Gate |
| MDK2 MDK2 MDK2 is a video game and sequel to the third-person shooter, MDK. The original MDK was developed by Shiny Entertainment and released in 1997 by Interplay. The sequel was developed by BioWare.... |
2000 | Omen Engine | Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 2 PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan... , WiiWare WiiWare WiiWare is a service that allows Wii users to download games and applications specifically designed and developed for the Wii video game console made by Nintendo. These games and applications can only be purchased and downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel under the WiiWare section... |
Sequel to MDK MDK (video game) MDK is a third-person shooter game developed by Shiny Entertainment and released in 1997 by Playmates Interactive Entertainment in North America and Interplay Entertainment in Europe for the PC, Macintosh, and subsequently PlayStation. It was one of the first PC games to require a Pentium or... |
| Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn is a computer role-playing game developed by BioWare and released on September 26, 2000. The game is the sequel to Baldur's Gate, and, opening only a few months after the events of the earlier game, continues the story of the player character, whose unique heritage... |
2000 | Infinity Engine Infinity Engine Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Mac OS Mac OS Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface... |
|
| Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal is the expansion pack for the computer role-playing game Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, and is the final chapter in the Baldur's Gate series. It adds a multi-level dungeon called Watcher's Keep to the game and completes the main plot... |
2001 | Infinity Engine Infinity Engine Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Mac OS Mac OS Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface... |
Expansion pack to Baldur's Gate II |
| Neverwinter Nights Neverwinter Nights Neverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial... |
2002 | Aurora Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Linux Linux Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
|
| Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide is an expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights developed by Floodgate Entertainment and BioWare, and published by Infogrames Entertainment . It was released in June 2003... |
2003 | Aurora Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Linux Linux Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
Expansion pack to Neverwinter Nights |
| Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark is an expansion pack for the role-playing video game Neverwinter Nights produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames Entertainment... |
2003 | Aurora Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Linux Linux Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
Expansion pack to Neverwinter Nights |
| Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its... |
2003 | Odyssey Engine Odyssey Engine The Odyssey Engine is a computer game engine developed by BioWare and has exclusively been used to create three dimensional computer role-playing games... |
Xbox Xbox The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console... , Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
|
| Jade Empire Jade Empire Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content... |
2005 | Odyssey Engine Odyssey Engine The Odyssey Engine is a computer game engine developed by BioWare and has exclusively been used to create three dimensional computer role-playing games... |
Xbox Xbox The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console... , Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
|
| Mass Effect | 2007 | Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 is a computer game engine developed by Epic Games. It is the third generation of Unreal Engine, designed for DirectX 9/10/11 personal computers , the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation Vita, the Wii U, Android and OpenGL-based operating systems such as iOS and Mac OS X... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
|
| Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is a Nintendo DS console role-playing game based on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and developed by Canadian RPG developer BioWare as their first handheld video game project... |
2008 | Nintendo DS Nintendo DS The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP... |
||
| Mass Effect Galaxy Mass Effect Galaxy Mass Effect Galaxy is a game for iOS, released on June 22, 2009. The story focuses on backstory of one of the companion characters from Mass Effect 2. BioWare stated that the game will contain two hours of gameplay and will have "top down shooter action"... |
2009 | iOS | ||
| Dragon Age: Origins Dragon Age: Origins Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise... |
2009 | Eclipse Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Mac OS X Mac OS X Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems... |
Described as being a spiritual successor to their Baldur's Gate Baldur's Gate (series) Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also... series of games. |
| Mass Effect 2 Mass Effect 2 Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010 and for PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011... |
2010 | Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 is a computer game engine developed by Epic Games. It is the third generation of Unreal Engine, designed for DirectX 9/10/11 personal computers , the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation Vita, the Wii U, Android and OpenGL-based operating systems such as iOS and Mac OS X... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
|
| Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening is an expansion for the fantasy role-playing video game Dragon Age: Origins. Awakening adds a brand new campaign which takes place during the aftermath of Dragon Age: Origins... |
2010 | Eclipse Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
Expansion pack to Dragon Age: Origins |
| Dragon Age II Dragon Age II Dragon Age II is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studios, and published by Electronic Arts. It is the second major game in BioWare's Dragon Age franchise... |
2011 | Lycium Engine | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
Released March 2011 |
| Star Wars: The Old Republic Star Wars: The Old Republic Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is an upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Currently in development by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an... |
2011 | HeroEngine HeroEngine HeroEngine is a 3D game engine and server technology platform originally developed by Simutronics Corporation specifically for building MMO-style games... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... |
In development |
| Mass Effect 3 Mass Effect 3 Mass Effect 3 is an upcoming action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3... |
2012 | Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 Unreal Engine 3 is a computer game engine developed by Epic Games. It is the third generation of Unreal Engine, designed for DirectX 9/10/11 personal computers , the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation Vita, the Wii U, Android and OpenGL-based operating systems such as iOS and Mac OS X... |
Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
In development |
| Dragon Age III Dragon Age III Dragon Age III, currently in development by BioWare, is an upcoming sequel to Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II It was first announced on Twitter, the evening of May 19, 2011, by BioWare's Creative Lead Alistair McNally.... |
TBA | TBA | Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... , PlayStation 3 PlayStation 3 The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... , Xbox 360 Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... |
In development |
Engines
BioWare created the Infinity EngineInfinity Engine
Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series...
, which was used as a core component for development of 2D
2D computer graphics
2D computer graphics is the computer-based generation of digital images—mostly from two-dimensional models and by techniques specific to them...
role-playing video game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
s based on Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
, such as Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate series
Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also...
and Icewind Dale. For their game Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights , produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames , is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that is based on third edition Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms rules. It was originally to be published by Interplay Entertainment, but the publisher's financial...
, launched in 2002, BioWare developed the Aurora Engine, the basis for a number of successful 3D RPGs thereafter.
Neverwinter Nights shipped with a number of tools allowing users to create their own role-playing adventures for single and multiplayer online. The tools, using the Aurora Engine, have been adapted to many forms of gameplay and storytelling, with thousands of amateur and professional modules available on various web sites; some released for sale as premium content. Neverwinter Nights was a pioneering example of user-created game content commercially supported and distributed over the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
.
The Odyssey Engine
Odyssey Engine
The Odyssey Engine is a computer game engine developed by BioWare and has exclusively been used to create three dimensional computer role-playing games...
was developed for the game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts. It was released for the Xbox on July 15, 2003, for Microsoft Windows on November 19, 2003, and on September 7, 2004 for Mac OS X. The Xbox version is playable on Xbox 360 with its...
, which was based on the Aurora Engine. BioWare has recently developed the Eclipse Engine (a next generation RPG engine) for the game Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
.
After years of working with licensed content, particularly from the D&D world, BioWare began efforts to develop their own original, independent universes and franchises. Jade Empire
Jade Empire
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox. The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content...
was a step in this direction, as are their current projects: the RPG series Mass Effect
Mass Effect
Mass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare for the Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios. The Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in November 2007 published by Microsoft Game Studios...
for Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PC
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, which utilizes the third version of the Unreal Engine
Unreal Engine
The Unreal Engine is a game engine developed by Epic Games, first illustrated in the 1998 first-person shooter game Unreal. Although primarily developed for first-person shooters, it has been successfully used in a variety of other genres, including stealth, MMORPGs and RPGs...
.
BioWare maintained a limited oversight on Obsidian Entertainment
Obsidian Entertainment
Obsidian Entertainment is an American video game developer founded in 2003 after the disestablishment of Interplay Productions' Black Isle Studios, for PC and console systems...
's development of Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2 is a computer role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. It is the sequel to BioWare's Neverwinter Nights, based on the Dungeons & Dragons pencil and paper fantasy role-playing game...
and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords is a role playing video game released for the Xbox and Microsoft Windows. The Xbox version of this sequel to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was released on December 6, 2004, while the Windows version was released on February 8, 2005...
.
Aurora Engine
The Aurora Engine was the 3D3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
successor to BioWare's earlier, 2D
2D computer graphics
2D computer graphics is the computer-based generation of digital images—mostly from two-dimensional models and by techniques specific to them...
game engine, called the Infinity Engine
Infinity Engine
Infinity Engine is a game engine which allows the creation of isometric computer role-playing games. It was originally developed by BioWare for a prototype RTS game codenamed Battleground Infinity, which was ultimately re-engineered to become the first installment of the Baldur's Gate series...
. The engine allows for real-time
Real-time computer graphics
Real-time computer graphics is the subfield of computer graphics focused on producing and analyzing images in real time. The term is most often used in reference to interactive 3D computer graphics, typically using a GPU, with video games the most noticeable users...
lighting and shadows, as well as surround sound
Surround sound
Surround sound encompasses a range of techniques such as for enriching the sound reproduction quality of an audio source with audio channels reproduced via additional, discrete speakers. Surround sound is characterized by a listener location or sweet spot where the audio effects work best, and...
. The first game released using the Aurora Engine was Neverwinter Nights, and included an accompanying "Aurora toolset
Aurora toolset
The Aurora toolset is a set of software tools developed by BioWare for use with the Aurora Engine, the game engine first used in BioWare's 2002 computer role-playing game Neverwinter Nights...
" for users to create their own content. The sequel, Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2 is a computer role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. It is the sequel to BioWare's Neverwinter Nights, based on the Dungeons & Dragons pencil and paper fantasy role-playing game...
, developed by Obsidian Entertainment
Obsidian Entertainment
Obsidian Entertainment is an American video game developer founded in 2003 after the disestablishment of Interplay Productions' Black Isle Studios, for PC and console systems...
, features an updated version of BioWare's engine named the Electron engine. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (from Obsidian Entertainment) use an updated version of the Aurora Engine called the Odyssey Engine
Odyssey Engine
The Odyssey Engine is a computer game engine developed by BioWare and has exclusively been used to create three dimensional computer role-playing games...
. Aurora was also used by CD Projekt Red
CD Projekt
CD Projekt is a Polish video game publisher. The company was founded in May 1994 by Marcin Iwiński and Michał Kiciński. From the beginning their goal was to publish software in the Polish market on compact discs...
in their game The Witcher, although the rendering engine was written from scratch.
Third party games using BioWare engines
Infinity Engine:- Planescape: TormentPlanescape: TormentPlanescape: Torment is a computer role-playing game developed for Windows by Black Isle Studios and released on December 12, 1999 by Interplay Entertainment. It takes place in Planescape, an Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy campaign setting...
(1999) - Icewind DaleIcewind DaleIcewind Dale is a computer role-playing game developed for Windows by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Entertainment. Released on June 30, 2000, it takes place in the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms campaign setting, and is based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition...
(2000)- Icewind Dale: Heart of WinterIcewind Dale: Heart of WinterIcewind Dale: Heart of Winter is an official expansion pack to the computer role-playing game Icewind Dale developed by Black Isle Studios. It introduced many changes and additions to the original game, and included an all-new campaign...
(2001) - Icewind Dale: Trials of the Luremaster (2001)
- Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter
- Icewind Dale IIIcewind Dale IIIcewind Dale II is a role-playing video game developed by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Entertainment, released on August 27, 2002. Like its 2000 predecessor Icewind Dale, the game is set in the Forgotten Realms fantasy setting in the Icewind Dale region...
(2002)
Odyssey Engine:
- Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith LordsStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith LordsStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords is a role playing video game released for the Xbox and Microsoft Windows. The Xbox version of this sequel to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was released on December 6, 2004, while the Windows version was released on February 8, 2005...
(2004)
Aurora Engine:
- Neverwinter Nights 2Neverwinter Nights 2Neverwinter Nights 2 is a computer role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. It is the sequel to BioWare's Neverwinter Nights, based on the Dungeons & Dragons pencil and paper fantasy role-playing game...
(2006)- Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the BetrayerNeverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the BetrayerNeverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer is a computer role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. It is an expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights 2. It was released in Autumn 2007 for the PC in North America, Europe, and Australia...
(2007) - Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of ZehirNeverwinter Nights 2: Storm of ZehirNeverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir is an expansion pack for the computer role-playing game Neverwinter Nights 2, developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. It was released in late 2008 in North America, Europe, and Australia...
(2008) - Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of WestgateNeverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of WestgateNeverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate is an expansion pack for the computer role-playing game Neverwinter Nights 2. It was developed by Ossian Studios and published by Atari on April 29, 2009. The player creates a character and controls it, along with a group of three pre-designed...
(2009)
- Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
- The WitcherThe Witcher (computer game)The Witcher is a computer role-playing game for the PC developed by CD Projekt RED STUDIO and published by CD Projekt in Poland and Atari for the rest of the world. The game is based on the book series of the same name by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The game utilizes BioWare's proprietary...
(2007)
Controversy
A widely-reported incident involved a player unable to activate his purchased copy of Dragon Age 2, due to being banned from the BioWare forums. BioWare's Stanley Woo replied to the user in support of the ban by pointing to sections 9 and 11 of EA's terms of service, which permits EA to terminate users' access to its online services. Woo clearly acknowledged that the forum ban can affect access to game content, adding that players should "consider it an added incentive to follow the rules you say you're going to follow." Technology news website Ars TechnicaArs Technica
Ars Technica is a technology news and information website created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, science, technology policy, and video games. Ars Technica is known for its features, long articles that go...
called the incident a "potentially dangerous precedent, where saying something inflammatory about a developer or publisher could result in the company revoking the player's right to play a game he or she lawfully acquired." When the story was later picked-up by several news websites, EA's Andrew Wong said the entire incident was actually an unforeseen glitch, and that the player's account had been reactivated.
Awards
In addition to numerous game awards, the company has been awarded with a number of business related awards:- Profit 100 – Canada's Fastest Growing Companies 2005 (Rank 81)
- In October 2008, BioWare was named one of Alberta's Top EmployersAlberta's Top EmployersAlberta's Top Employers is a competition that recognizes the best workplaces in Alberta. Published annually since October 2005, the designation recognizes the Alberta employers that lead their peers in providing exemplary employee benefits and forward-thinking human resource programs...
by Mediacorp Canada Inc., which was announced by the Calgary HeraldCalgary HeraldThe Calgary Herald is a daily newspaper published in the Canadian city of Calgary, Alberta.- History :The paper was first published on August 31, 1883 by Andrew Armour and Thomas Braden as The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate and General Advertiser. It started as a weekly paper with only...
and the Edmonton JournalEdmonton JournalThe Edmonton Journal is a daily newspaper in Edmonton, Alberta. It is part of the Postmedia Network.-History:The Journal was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunningham — as a rival to Alberta's first newspaper, the 23-year-old...
.
The full list of awards can be found on their web site.
- Spike TV's 2010 Video Game Awards: Studio Of The Year (2010)
- Hall of Fame induction (2010)