BioWare

Background

BioWare, founded in 1996, is a video game developer based in Edmonton, Canada. It is best known for the Mass Effect series, as well as numerous other games in the RPG genre, built on in-house engines. In 2005, the company created an alliance unit with Pandemic Studios, which was funded by Elevation Partners. On October 11, 2007, Electronic Arts bought the partnership and gained control over both studios. Within EA, Bioware added three additional offices in Austin and Montreal, and one more after the merge with Mythic Entertainment.

Contents

1st Logo (October 1996)	2nd Logo (December 21, 1998)	3rd Logo (March 31, 2000; July 15, 2003; October 12, 2011)	4th Logo (September 21, 2000-June 18, 2002)	5th Logo (April 12, 2005)	6th Logo (November 20, 2007-May 30, 2009)


7th Logo (November 3, 2009)	8th Logo (January 26, 2010-July 22, 2011)	9th Logo (March 8, 2011)	10th Logo (December 20, 2011)	11th Logo (March 6, 2012)	12th Logo (2018-)

1st Logo (October 1996)

Logo: On a steel background, we see the word "BIOWARE" surrounded with emboss debris fragments, and there are two cybernetic hands above operating the fragments. The word "corporation" is seen below the logo. All of this is carved onto the background.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen on Shattered Steel.

2nd Logo (December 21, 1998)

Logo: On a white background, we see a "BioWare" in a stylized font (the "B", "i", "W", "r" and "e" have ledges on their tops, while the "a" looks like an upside down "V"). Below the logo is the word "CORP" and "DEVELOPED BY" is seen in the top-left corner. A blue dot trembles in the down-right corner, then it expands and turns into a 3D-dimensional abbreviation of the company name, formed by one line. The space around this figure is taken by the quarter part of a black circle.

Technique: The dot's movement.

Music/Sounds: Some eerie creaking, developing into the sound of a closing metal gate.

Availability: Seen on Baldur's Gate.

3rd Logo (March 31, 2000; July 15, 2003; October 12, 2011)

Logo: On a complicated background, we see the "BioWare CORP" wordmark from the previous logo, but it is colored silver, and gradients and pitched edges have been added to the logo. There is also "DEVELOPED BY" above the name.

Variant: On Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, the logo is put on a gray gray background and the logo itself is light blue. In addition, the logo slides in letter-by-letter (the "BioWare" text from both sides of the screen, and "CORP" from the bottom of the screen), followed by the "DEVELOPED BY" text fading in.

Technique: None. For the variant, the letters sliding in and the "DEVELOPED BY" text fading in.

Music/Sounds: Sounds of spaceship engines, or none.

Availability: Seen on MDK 2 and its HD remake, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.

4th Logo (September 21, 2000-June 18, 2002)

Logo: We see a painting, showing a red and gold dragon holding a piece of parchment with the BioWare logo on it.

Variant: An early version of the logo had a frame around the painting, and it was on a black background.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen on Baldur's Gate II and its expansion, and on Neverwinter Nights.

5th Logo (April 12, 2005)

Logo: We see a close up of the "BioWare" wordmark passing through the screen, showing pieces of Asian landscapes and warriors inside the letters. When the letters pass, we can see that the wordmark (which looks similar to the wordmark from the 3rd logo) is already complete on a grainy blue background.

Technique: The letters passing, the word shining; done in high quality 3D animation.

Music/Sounds: A dramatic soundtrack.

Availability: Seen on Jade Empire.

6th Logo (November 20, 2007-May 30, 2009)

Logo: On a black background, several blue flashes of light appear, revealing the letters of the company's name turned to their side. The letters then turn upward to their normal position, revealing themselves as the same "BioWare" wordmark from the previous four logos, but without "CORP", and with a blue relief glance texture. The logo then shines a few times.

Technique: The letters turning and shining.

Music/Sounds: A sound similar to the closing of a solid metal lid.

Availability: Seen on Mass Effect and Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood for NDS. It also appeared on the E3 trailer of Mass Effect 2.

7th Logo (November 3, 2009)

Logo: A knife blade slowly passes the screen to the left, leaving trails of red substance and an ink dragon following it. The dragon unleashes and flies over the screen, leaving ink that compresses into the Electronic Arts logo. The EA logo then blows to a formless ink spot on the screen. The ink then begins to dissolve, revealing the BioWare logo behind it (in a red color).

Technique: The knife passing, the dragon's movements, the ink forming.

Music/Sounds: Sounds of the dragon flying, emerging flame and growling.

Availability: Seen on Dragon Age: Origins.

8th Logo (January 26, 2010-July 22, 2011)

Standard
Mass Effect 2

Logo: Blue sparks open up, which cut out the BioWare logo at the same time. While cutting, the logo zooms out to its normal position.

Variant: On Mass Effect 2, the logo is tinted in red.

Technique: The cutting sparks.

Music/Sounds: A high-pitched trembling sound.

Availability: Seen on the trailers for Star Wars: The Old Republic and Mass Effect 2.

9th Logo (March 8, 2011)

Logo: Following the Electronic Arts variant, which turns into the dragon from the Dragon Age logo, the dragon flies past the camera, unleashes a stream of flames and leaves a red version of the BioWare logo. The logo then begins to dissolve into red steam, which becomes thicker and takes the whole screen with its tentacles.

Technique: TBA.

Music/Sounds: TBA.

Availability: Seen on Dragon Age II.

10th Logo (December 20, 2011)

Logo: On a black background, the BioWare logo fades in orange flames, with hot smoke swirling around and disappearing. The logo then shines.

Technique: The logo fading in flames, the hot smoke swirling.

Music/Sounds: A low-pitched burst sound.

Availability: Seen on Star Wars: The Old Republic.

11th Logo (March 6, 2012)

Logo: On a black background, we see two shots of what appears to be a solider activating an unknown apparatus. The scene then switches to a shot of an orange portal. Inside the portal is the BioWare logo, colored in orange, which then flickers to the Electronic Arts variant. After that, the machine is removed from the screen.

Technique: The portal.

Music/Sounds: Sounds of the machine turning on and computerized beeps.

Availability: Seen on Mass Effect 3.

12th Logo (2018-)

Logo: On a black background, various blue slanted lines appear, and we see multiple characters from the BioWare games. The camera then pulls back to reveal a grey "B", with part of it glowing cyan. The "B" moves to the left of the screen to reveal the rest of the wordmark, now in a different font than before, with a blue curve briefly going through it. The logo zooms away slightly before fading out.

Variants: TBA.

Technique: TBA.

Music/Sounds: TBA.

Availability: It was first seen on the demo for Anthem, and later appeared on the game itself, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and Mass Effect Legendary Edition. It is expected to appear on future games from BioWare.