Build A Rocket Boy CEO Announces More Layoffs, Insists on 'Organized Espionage and Corporate Sabotage' Claims Amid MindsEye Struggles

Build A Rocket Boy CEO Mark Gerhard has confirmed another round of layoffs at the troubled UK studio, while reinforcing his allegations of 'organized espionage and corporate sabotage' surrounding the troubled launch of their game MindsEye.

Last July, IGN reported that the Edinburgh-based developer had sent redundancy risk notices to its approximately 300 UK employees following MindsEye's disastrous release. Shortly after the game launched, Build A Rocket Boy expressed being 'heartbroken' over player issues and pledged a series of patches to address performance problems, glitches, and AI bugs.

MindsEye, a story-driven action adventure, was originally conceived as part of Everywhere—the 'Roblox for adults' creation platform led by former Grand Theft Auto design chief Leslie Benzies. The studio eventually shifted focus to MindsEye, but the game has failed to deliver commercial success.

In July, Benzies told staff the studio would recover and relaunch MindsEye, attributing difficulties partly to internal and external saboteurs. Now, CEO Mark Gerhard announced further layoffs while revealing the studio has been investigating what he describes as 'criminal activity' around the game's launch. He claims to have uncovered 'overwhelming evidence' of 'organized espionage and corporate sabotage' affecting MindsEye, though he declined to provide specifics as 'this matter is moving toward prosecution.'

The layoff announcement appeared on Build A Rocket Boy's LinkedIn page, where development community responses criticized Gerhard's statement—one commenter called it 'incredibly rude,' another 'delusional.'

In January, Gerhard accused YouTuber Cyber Boi of 'media manipulation, espionage, [and] sabotage' targeting Build A Rocket Boy in a cease and desist notice posted to the MindsEye Discord. He expressed disappointment over alleged employee leaks of confidential information and warned of imminent legal action.

Before MindsEye's launch, Gerhard made headlines claiming a 'concerted effort' to 'trash the game and the studio,' suggesting paid individuals or spam bots were posting negative comments. IO Interactive, publisher of the Hitman series, later denied involvement.

Earlier this year, Build A Rocket Boy stated Benzies was on 'well-earned temporary leave.' A company spokesperson told The Times he was 'simply taking a short, planned break following an intense period of work.' Gerhard, then co-CEO, informed staff Benzies was recharging after over a year of non-stop work and signed his email as 'CEO.'

Despite multiple updates, MindsEye continues to struggle with player numbers. At publication time, only 11 players were active on Steam, with a 24-hour peak concurrent count of just 39.