Highguard's Development Team Reportedly Drops Below 20 After Wildlight Entertainment's Major Layoffs

Wildlight Entertainment, the studio behind Highguard, is now reportedly operating with fewer than 20 developers after a significant round of layoffs that occurred just weeks following the game's release. This information comes from a recent Bloomberg report detailing the studio's journey from its inception in 2021 to its current struggles.

Founded by veterans from Respawn Entertainment, the team aimed to replicate the success of titles like Apex Legends and Titanfall. Initially, they focused on a survival-based shooter, but when that concept didn't meet expectations, they shifted direction to create Highguard, a hero shooter that retained some elements from the original survival game. During development, testers provided positive feedback, noting that the game was more enjoyable with voice chat via microphone, though they also found it overly complex and less fun without it.

According to sources cited by Bloomberg, Wildlight maintained a positive work environment, and the team was optimistic about their project until its announcement at The Game Awards in December. The reveal was reportedly encouraged by Geoff Keighley, who enjoyed his experience with the game. Originally, the studio planned to announce and launch Highguard at the same time, but the early announcement led to a month-and-a-half gap filled with online speculation before the release.

Upon launch, Highguard attracted a notable number of concurrent players on Steam but failed to retain them, resulting in minimal revenue from microtransactions and poor reviews. Despite the developers' belief that they had enough financial support to enhance the game, their backer Tencent unexpectedly withdrew funding. This led to layoffs affecting most of the 100-person team, leaving fewer than 20 staff members to work on salvaging Highguard. Recently, the remaining developers confirmed that a new patch is in development, after a website issue mistakenly suggested the game was being shut down.

For more details, the full report is available at Bloomberg.