BioWare has announced that it will lay off approximately 50 employees, or about 20% of its total workforce (according to the latest employment data), as part of a “transition to a more agile and more focused studio.” This was pointed out by Eurogamer.

Among those fired are Lucas Christianson, the chief writer of Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, and the writer of the first three Dragon Age games Mary Kirby.

Christianson is not only one of the people who brought the Baldur’s Gate series to life, but also the creator of some of the most famous game characters, including Minsky and Boo from Baldur’s Gate and the Joker from Mass Effect. Christianson has worked at BioWare for more than 25 years and has contributed to 30 games.

Mary Kirby has been working at BioWare since 2006, taking part in the creation of all Dragon Age installments and breathing life into such a well-known character as Warrick Tetras.

“In order to meet the needs of our upcoming projects, continue to hold ourselves to the highest standard of quality, and ensure BioWare can continue to thrive in an industry that’s rapidly evolving, we must shift towards a more agile and more focused studio. It will allow our developers to iterate quickly, unlock more creativity, and form a clear vision of what we’re building before development ramps up,” BioWare General Manager Gary McKay wrote in a post about the changes in the studio.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve started to worry about the fate of the future Dragon Age: Dreadwolf, and indeed BioWare itself.