A new investigative report sheds light on the rapid downfall of Wildlight Entertainment’s debut title, revealing hidden financial ties to Tencent and internal mismanagement.
Following the devastating mass layoffs at Wildlight Entertainment, a detailed report by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier has provided a clearer picture of the crisis surrounding Highguard. The “PvP raid shooter,” which concluded The Game Awards 2025 with high expectations, has transitioned from a major industry promise to one of 2026’s first significant gaming disasters in just one month.
The secret funding and Tencent’s exit
One of the most shocking revelations is that Highguard was secretly funded by the Chinese tech giant Tencent. According to sources, the studio’s financial runway was abruptly cut short when Tencent pulled its support following the game’s poor initial reception and failure to meet player retention metrics.
While leadership initially led staff to believe there was enough capital to sustain months of post-launch updates, an “all-hands” meeting on February 11 revealed the studio was effectively out of money. As a result, approximately 80% of the 100-person staff was laid off, leaving fewer than 20 developers to maintain the game.
“Hubris” and rejected feedback
Former employees cited “leadership hubris” as a primary cause for the project’s failure. The studio, composed largely of veterans from the Apex Legends and Titanfall teams, reportedly banked too heavily on their past successes.
Key points from the report include:
- Refusal of Testing: Leadership allegedly rejected calls for broad public playtests or a beta phase, opting instead for a “shadow drop” strategy similar to Apex Legends.
- TGA Reception: Internal morale reportedly tanked after the reveal at The Game Awards, where the internet’s reaction was lukewarm to hostile, yet the studio’s direction remained unchanged.
- Pivot from Survival: The game was originally conceived as a survival title similar to Rust before being retooled into the current hero-based raid shooter.
Current state and uncertain future
Despite the layoffs, the skeleton crew remaining at Wildlight has released patches and a new “Airship” base mode in an attempt to stabilize the game. However, with concurrent player counts on Steam dropping from a peak of 97,000 to just a few thousand, the long-term viability of Highguard as a live-service title remains in serious doubt.
At this time, neither Wildlight Entertainment nor Tencent has issued an official public comment regarding the Bloomberg report.
Amanda Torati is a linguist and postgraduate researcher who specializes in the intersection of storytelling and interactive media. With a deep fascination for the gaming ecosystem, she focuses on deconstructing game narratives and technical trends to make them accessible to players of all levels. At ABWaves Game, Amanda combines her academic background with in-depth research to deliver reviews and guides that are both precise and engaging, ensuring readers stay informed in a fast-paced digital world.
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