Entertainment <\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHighguard<\/a>\u201d maker Wildlight Entertainment<\/a> has laid off multiple members of its staff less than a month<\/a> after the release of its debut video game.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cToday we made an incredibly difficult decision to part ways with a number of our team members while keeping a core group of developers to continue innovating on and supporting the game,\u201d Wildlight said in a statement Wednesday. \u201cWe\u2019re proud of the team, talent, and the product we\u2019ve created together. We\u2019re also grateful for players who gave the game a shot, and those who continue to be a part of our community.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe number of staff impacted by the layoffs was not disclosed and a representative for Wildlight declined Variety<\/em>\u2018s request for further comment.<\/p>\n \n\tFounded by CEO Dusty Welch and game director Chad Grenier, Wildlight Entertainment\u00a0is made up of roughly 100 employees, the majority of which previously worked with Grenier and Welch at Electronic Arts\u2019 Respawn on \u201cApex Legends.\u201d The indie studio was created amid the pandemic and all staffers at the company were exclusively working on PvP raid shooter \u201cHighguard,\u201d which launched Jan. 26 as a free-to-play title across PC, Xbox Series X and S and PlayStation 5.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHighguard\u201d is described as having \u201ca new competitive structure that blends siege warfare and territory control in an evolving match where power levels escalate until only one base is left standing.\u201d <\/p>\n \n\tThe game has been closely compared to Blizzard\u2019s successful \u201cOverwatch\u201d franchise and the now-shuttered PlayStation title \u201cConcord\u201d (which was pulled two weeks after launch<\/a> in September 2024). And while \u201cHighguard\u201d launched with a three-person-team structure, rather than the 5v5 model utilized by \u201cOverwatch 2\u201d and \u201cConcord,\u201d it quickly added the five-person-team option in response to fan demand.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI think we do have a very unique game that is unlike anything else out there on the market, and we\u2019re really excited about it,\u201d Grenier told\u00a0Variety<\/em>\u00a0at a press preview event for \u201cHighguard\u201d on Jan. 22.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWhat we\u2019re confident in is that we\u2019re not going anywhere. We\u2019re not going away,\u201d Welch said at the time. \u201cWe as a team have a lot of experience in building franchises that have staying power. And this one, as Chad alluded to, we have a year\u2019s worth of content that\u2019s near completion that is going to engage an audience for quite a bit of time. So we\u2019re excited to be able to bring that. We have the experience, but that said, we\u2019re humbled, and we hope people love this \u2014 but we\u2019re ready to engage with them.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\tPopular on Variety\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n