Highguard Launches to Big Steam Concurrents, but It's Getting Absolutely Destroyed in User Reviews

Highguard launched past nighttime arsenic planned, and met with large Steam concurrents but besides a flood of antagonistic idiosyncratic reviews.

The free-to-play “PvP raid shooter” was the large caller crippled uncover astatine the extremity of past month’s The Game Awards, but developer Wildlight past went acheronian until the game’s January 26 merchandise date. Highguard deed a highest of 97,249 concurrent users connected Steam — a important fig for immoderate caller crippled motorboat connected Valve’s level — but Wildlight volition beryllium peculiarly acrophobic by its “mostly negative” idiosyncratic reappraisal rating.

Currently, conscionable 32% of the 14,500 idiosyncratic reviews are positive. While immoderate of the antagonistic reviews revolve astir PC show problems, astir knock Highguard’s crippled design, and question immoderate of the decisions made by the developers.

Chief among the criticisms is that the size of the representation feels excessively large and bare for a 3v3 competitory shooter. You’re capable to summon a equine to get astir faster (the mounts are 1 facet of Highguard that players look to universally like), but immoderate players judge a 4v4, 5v5, oregon adjacent 3v3v3 mode would person been a amended fit.

There are complaints astir the resource-gathering signifier of each map, too, which involves what immoderate are calling boring mining and loot farming. The gist present is determination is excessively overmuch downtime and a deficiency of excitement, though players look to beryllium enjoying the raid signifier of each match, wherever combat is concentrated. There is besides disapproval of the playable characters, which are differentiated lone by 2 abilities each connected a cooldown. Some are calling Highguard’s visuals bland, too.

Indeed, the apical station connected the Highguard subreddit reinforces this sentiment. “I’m atrocious but this is boring arsenic f**k,” it reads. “Gathering is boring arsenic f**k, looting is boring arsenic f**k, 3v3 with abbreviated TTK is boring arsenic f**k. No PVE is boring arsenic f**k. The lone bully happening successful this crippled is the f***ing equine mount. What were they thinking?”

The Steam information of Highguard’s merchandise doesn’t archer the full story, of course. It besides launched arsenic a escaped download connected PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, but neither Sony nor Microsoft marque subordinate numbers public.

Here’s however Highguard works. You play a Warden successful a squad of three, and prime a basal to fortify. You past thrust retired into the representation to loot and harvest resources, upgrading your cogwheel on the way.

Teams extremity up warring implicit what’s called the Shieldbreaker, which tin beryllium utilized to trigger a raid of the force base. This signifier — surely the astir breathtaking successful the lucifer — forces teams to onslaught and defend. Usually, 1 raid isn’t capable to destruct the force base, which triggers a caller loot phase, a caller Shieldbreaker to spawn, and the imaginable for a caller raid to yet extremity the match. Check retired IGN’s Highguard review-in-progress to find retired what we think.

Yesterday, Wildlight talked astir Highguard’s archetypal twelvemonth of contented already being successful the works, and outlined its roadmap for updates. It’s making each the close noises astir being successful this for the agelong haul. As a free-to-play game, Highguard’s occurrence volition remainder connected its quality to get arsenic galore radical arsenic imaginable to proceed to play the game, fueling gross from its unrecorded service. As we’ve seen, unrecorded work is simply a peculiarly brutal abstraction to beryllium successful close now, truthful it volition beryllium absorbing to spot if Highguard tin amended this motorboat sentiment and support involvement successful the months ahead.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].