Highguard reportedly supported by less than 20 developers following mass layoffs

Developer Wildlight Entertainment is now reportedly operating with fewer than 20 staff members working on Highguard following a wave of layoffs that hit the studio just two weeks after the game's January 26 launch.

The details:

• According to a new Bloomberg report, Wildlight now consists of fewer than 20 employees, who are currently working on Highguard in hopes of reviving interest in the game after most of its staff were laid off on February 11. Despite launching less than a month ago, the hero shooter has seen its concurrent player count on Steam decline rapidly, sitting at an average in the three-figure range according to SteamDB.
• Former developers told Bloomberg that overconfidence from the studio inevitably played a part in its quick failure, with leadership reportedly believing the developer, which consists of former Respawn Entertainment employees, could replicate the success of Apex Legends despite the title being over seven years old.
• It’s also said that Wildlight's playtests were conducted with teammates communicating over voice chat and developers on hand to answer questions. This led to situations that did not accurately reflect the average play session, resulting in the developers missing out on key criticisms of the final product, preventing them from being addressed before it launched.