Highguard game developer lays off staff just two weeks after release

The developer of a multiplayer shooter given top billing at The Game Awards has laid off multiple staff members just two weeks after its release.

Highguard was first revealed at December's ceremony in the end-of-show preview slot traditionally reserved for the biggest upcoming releases.

Despite being made by a team of games industry veterans who worked on successful titles such as Call of Duty, Apex Legends and Titanfall, the free-to-play game struggled to retain players since it launched in January.

In a statement, developer Wildlight Entertainment confirmed it had "made an incredibly difficult decision to part ways with a number of our team members".

Highguard's "world premiere" at The Game Awards received a muted reaction, with many fans confused by its prominence in the show.

They also complained its trailer failed to explain exactly how the game worked and what distinguished it from other games in the crowded multiplayer space.

Highguard's makers have been criticised for the lack of marketing in the run-up to its release, which was announced at short notice after a period of silence.

When it finally launched for PC, PlayStation and Xbox on 26 January, hands-on press previews largely painted a positive picture, saying the game offered a unique take on its genre.

It initially attracted just under 100,000 players on PC and about 380,000 viewers on streaming site Twitch, according to data-tracking website SteamDB.

But those numbers have dropped sharply since, with the game reaching just 3,600 concurrent PC users on the day the layoffs were announced.

However, it has retained a core base of dedicated players, and its developers previously said they had a year's worth of updates mapped out.

It's been suggested that Highguard faced an uphill battle after the backlash to its premiere and the lack of publicity as its launch approached.

In a post, Game Awards organiser Geoff Keighley said it was "an unfortunate, brutal and sad outcome for a game I enjoyed in early play tests".

Online comments were quick to compare the game to Concord - Sony's multiplayer shooter flop that was taken off sale just two weeks after release.

Both games were hero shooters attempting to draw players away from popular, established rivals such as Apex Legends and Overwatch, which launched a huge reboot this month.

However, Wildlight has said it intends to keep working on Highguard with "a core group of developers to continue innovating on and supporting the game".

Its statement said: "We're proud of the team, talent, and the product we've created together.

"We're also grateful for players who gave the game a shot, and those who continue to be a part of our community."

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