Anthem taught BioWare to focus on what it does well.

During an interview with the magazine edgeDragon Age: The Veilguard creative director John Epler explained that while he liked many aspects of Anthem, he felt BioWare wasn’t acting on what it knew when it took on an online multiplayer game.

“We are a studio that has always been built around delving into narrative and RPGs.”Eppler explained (via VGC). “I’m proud of a lot of things about Anthem — I’ve been on this project for a year and a half. But ultimately, we were building a game that focused on something we weren’t necessarily good at.”

The director mentioned that many BioWare members joined the company because they specialize in single-player games, which prevented them from doing what they do best in Anthem.

“For me and the team, the biggest lesson was to know what you’re good at and then double down on your efforts.”He said. “Don’t be too spread out. Don’t try to do a bunch of different things that you don’t have experience with. A lot of people on this team came here to build a story-focused single-player RPG.

Anthem was released in February 2019 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, after being widely criticized at the time for its gameplay, technical aspects, and story. A year later, BioWare said it would reinvent the game’s gameplay as part of a long-term update plan, but poor sales led Electronic Arts to choose to shut down the game in 2021.

Will Dragon Age: The Veilguard mark BioWare’s return to its prime? We’ll find out later this year, when the game launches for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S at a yet-to-be-announced date.