'I think, ultimately, we could have made a different trailer' — Wildlight Entertainment CEO wishes 'Highguard had been received better' amidst the game's negative review score on Steam

The free-to-play shooter did achieve almost 100,000 concurrent Steam players on launch day

News By Demi Williams published 27 January 2026

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• Wildlight Entertainment CEO and founder Dusty Welch thinks the studio could have made a "better" trailer for Highguard
• "I wish Highguard had been received better. I wish the feedback had been better," Welch says
• The game was released yesterday and now has a "Mostly Negative" score on Steam despite almost surpassing 100,000 concurrent players on Steam on launch day

As Highguard launches to negative reviews on Steam, Wildlight Entertainment's CEO has admitted the studio could have marketed the game better.

The free-to-play PvP shooter, created by former Apex Legends and Titanfall developers, was announced as the 'one last thing' at The Game Awards last month with a lukewarm trailer and a January 26, 2026, release date.

Since then, Wildlight had been radio silent, offering no new details or social media updates on the game, which had everyone wondering if the game was going to be delayed.

Well, the game has officially released on PC and consoles, and although the game has achieved a peak of 97,249 concurrent players on launch day (via SteamDB), the game is currently sitting at a 'Mostly Negative' score on Steam, with 13,363 negative reviews compared to 6,027 positive reviews.

The response has been pretty mixed to say the least, and Wildlight Entertainment CEO and founder Dusty Welch wishes it had been received better ahead of launch.

Speaking to PC Gamer following a hands-on event last week, Welch discussed the response to the game's announcement trailer at The Game Awards and admitted that the studio could have made a "better" trailer.

"Look, I wish Highguard had been received better. I wish the feedback had been better," said Welch. "Part of that's on us, right? We didn't put our heads in the sand. We, as a team, saw the feedback. We're gamers ourselves. We're online ourselves reading the feedback."

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