Highguard, the debut free-to-play PvP 'raid shooter' from Wildlight Entertainment, launched across Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation with much anticipation. However, despite peaking at over 95,000 concurrent players, the game has garnered a 'Mostly Negative' review rating on Steam. According to SteamDB, 78.2% of players, or 8,383 out of 10,716 total reviews, left negative feedback, while only 2,333 reviews were positive.

The game's criticism centers on a lack of direction, poor map and interaction design, discordant pacing and mechanics, and lackluster performance. Players also criticized the game for being essentially a 3v3 shooter with a large map and tedious mining and looting mechanics, which contradict the game's promise of fast-paced gunplay. On Reddit, players further expressed frustration with the game's poor image quality, or 'fuzziness,' and the perceived oversaturation of MOBA and shooter games.

This situation echoes the troubles faced by Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, which, despite a loyal player base, is now on life support. Wildlight Entertainment has yet to comment on the initial performance or player sentiment. The game's struggles raise questions about the challenges new studios face in delivering a polished and engaging experience, especially in a crowded market. Players and analysts are watching closely to see if Wildlight can turn things around.