The entrance and an exterior wall of EA’s Madrid office were marked with spray-painted “SAVE MASS EFFECT” messages, according to a Reddit user who said they encountered the graffiti while leaving a nearby movie theater. The incident represents the latest—and most confrontational—response from fans following EA’s announcement earlier this month that BioWare would be closed.
The studio’s shutdown has fueled fears that the Mass Effect series will not receive another installment. In recent days, supporters have also paid for a 15-second advertisement in Times Square and backed a Change petition calling on EA to continue developing the franchise, whether or not BioWare remains involved. The petition had collected more than 250,000 signatures at the time of the report.
EA’s Madrid office primarily works on EA Sports titles. Fans remain divided over the increasingly visible campaign, with some describing the tactics as damaging to the community’s image and others viewing them as an understandable attempt to draw attention to the series’ future.
The report notes that the graffiti and other campaigns are unlikely to reverse EA’s decision. Sources cited by journalist Jason Schreier reportedly said the company had moved away from Mass Effect in favor of what it considered safer Star Wars projects, including a possible Battlefront 3. Avi Lewis, the recently elected leader of Canada’s federal New Democratic Party, has also called for stronger protections against private equity damaging Canadian game studios and suggested that BioWare employees should receive federal support to rebuild the studio themselves.
Sources: Kotaku.