Update []: As expected, Highguard developer Wildlight Entertainment has issued a statement (as per Kotaku) on the previously assumed layoffs, confirming that it's "made an incredibly difficult decision to part ways with a number of our team members".
More than one of these (now former) employees have commented on the situation, claiming that "most" of the people who were working on the game have been laid off.
Wildlight clarifies that it's "keeping a core group of developers to continue innovating on and supporting the game".
We'll be real: it's not looking good for Highguard.
Original Story: Assuming a fresh Linkedin post is accurate, developer Wildlight Entertainment has laid off "most" of its staff following the underwhelming launch of its hero shooter, Highguard.
Highguard released just over a couple of weeks ago, so these supposed layoffs are hitting a lot faster than many onlookers may have anticipated.
Senior level designer Alex Graner is the apparent source for all of this, stating that he was laid off at some point earlier today.
"This one really stings as there was a lot of unreleased content I was really looking forward to that I and others designed for Highguard," Graner writes.
It's obviously a sickening blow for those, like Graner, who put their all into the project, only to see the whole thing struggle to stick the landing.
You may recall that Highguard was first revealed right at the end of The Game Awards 2025, which didn't really do it any favours considering the heightened expectations that surround such a slot on Geoff Keighley's annual show.
Still, Highguard released on its planned 26th January date, and although initial interest was promising, player numbers fell off a cliff in the space of just a few days.
The swift introduction of a 5v5 mode did seem to help the title out for a little while, but it apparently wasn't enough.
We would assume that an official statement on the Highguard's future will be published soon, and we'll update this story once that happens.