“If you build it, they will come,” goes the iconic Field of Dreams line, but in Highguard’s case, its gradual collapse has attracted enough attention as is. Following the tizzy caused by its official website going down, Wildlight Entertainment has since clarified that it’s being updated. Just don’t expect it to back any time soon.
“Not sure on the timeframe, but basically needs to be transferred and simplified,” said a developer on the game’s official Discord. “Low priority at the moment (reputational damage already done). Now we just need to focus on delivering updates and content to improve.”
Of course, it’s worth remembering that Wildlight Entertainment suffered extensive lay-offs shortly after Highguard’s release. A “core group” remains to continue development, and there’s no word on whether the current roadmap, which promises new content all the way up to December, will change. Time will tell, as always, but given the current player count, at least on Steam, it’s looking more dire every day.
Released on January 26th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, Highguard first shot to infamy for its announcement at The Game Awards 2025. Outside of criticism for its generic-looking gameplay and genre, much of the backlash stemmed from it going on last (which was a big change from the original plan to shadow-drop it).
You can check out our review for more details, but Wildlight has been quick with the improvements and new content. It released a limited-time 5v5 mode and made it permanent after a favorable response. Episode 2 also went live earlier this month, adding a new Warden, map, story cinematic and mount type. Stay tuned for updates and in the meantime, head here to learn more about how TiMi Studio Group, owned by Tencent, was allegedly funding the project.
