Next week, a shooter will launch created by former developers behind Titanfall 2 and Apex Legends. No one really knows what to expect from the game. Therefore, we clarify what is already known.
On Monday, January 26, 2026, the release of Highguard will take place. This is a PvP shooter that was first presented at the Game Awards 2025 and will be released as a free-to-play title on Steam, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5.
Since the Game Awards, however, it has been quiet about the game, and many shooter fans are not even aware of the upcoming release. Others are already writing the game off and derogatorily refer to it as “Concord 2,” even though hardly anything is known about the title.
Therefore, we take another look at Highguard and examine what is already known about the gameplay of the shooter, who is behind the game, and how we assess its chances of success.
The Fight for the Base – Who can defend their fortress better?
The developers have been very secretive about the gameplay of Highguard so far. On Steam, the game is described as a “PvP raid shooter.” However, the developers did not explain how such a raid works. Therefore, I analyzed the trailer to get a better impression of the gameplay.
This means, of course, that the classification of the gameplay is largely based on speculation that may not function 1:1 in the final game as I interpret it based on the trailer.!
The most important thing first: Apparently, each team has a base. The goal is to raid and destroy the opposing base. However, the bases are initially protected by a shield. This shield must be broken before the actual attack on the enemy base can begin.
The first scene of the trailer, however, suggests that players must level up or strengthen themselves in some way at the beginning of a round. They ride out of their base on various mounts and take out a few opponents who are apparently NPCs.
These NPCs drop red, round crystals upon death, which can be broken with a melee weapon. It seems that the essence stored in the crystal is consumed as a result. Since we later see in the trailer that all playable characters have different abilities, I suspect that consuming these red crystals charges something like skill energy. We also see that opposing players drop these crystals as well.
Subsequently, the teams push to a spot on the map where a sword is located. This sword is called the “Shieldbreaker” and seems to function like a key: In the trailer, we see a player inserting the sword into an opening in the shield of the base. Then, a kind of siege weapon, a gigantic tank, spawns that will break the shield.
Next, the teams fight inside the attacked base. Both teams employ various abilities and weapons, and even destroy some of the buildings within the base. The trailer ends after one team places a kind of explosive device at a specific location, causing the enemy base to explode. This final step is reminiscent of tactical shooters like Counter-Strike or Valorant.
According to the video description on YouTube, the destruction of the enemy base is meant to secure new territory. There could be various factions fighting to take control of as many areas of an overarching map as possible.
Shooter Meets Fantasy: Mounts, Weapons, and Magical Abilities
To quickly reach the Shieldbreaker or the opposing base, you can summon various mounts, which then spawn beneath you. In the trailer, there were a puma, horses, and bears shown. Players were still able to attack opponents while on the back of the mount. However, for the actual battle against other players, they still dismounted. Dismounting from the mount was very fluid, without animation, thus maintaining the movement momentum.
The movement of the playable characters, however, is not limited to the mounts. We already got a glimpse of the available movement techniques: We saw a slide, as well as a powerful jump attack where a player jumped several meters forward. The latter could, however, be a skill of a specific character.
During the battle for territory, players, as seen in the trailer, employ not only firearms but various abilities as well.
- One character could create a kind of forward-directed earthquake by hitting the ground with a hammer, before shortly afterward covering the ground in front of him with lava.
- Another character created walls of ice that could be used for cover, for example. At a later point in the round, it appeared that the same character transformed into a sort of ice monster. He could then make ice spikes erupt from the ground by punching the ground with his fists.
- A third character briefly floated in the air after activating an ability and hurled electric spears at opponents, who were utterly pulverized by the attack.
Despite these magical or supernatural abilities, Highguard is a shooter and therefore also gave us a glimpse of the firearms in the trailer. Various types of weapons were shown: fully automatic rifles, a shotgun, revolvers, throwing knives, a sniper rifle, and even rocket launchers that demolished entire walls. The gunplay itself felt very intuitive. In my opinion, you can tell from the weapon behavior in the game which games the studio staff have worked on in the past.
More on this in the next section: The past of the developers
A Team Whose Past Inspires and Gives Hope
The team behind Highguard has many developers who have worked in the past on major, renowned shooters. Some even held leading positions (independent source on the career paths of the developers: mobygames.com).
Dusty Welch, one of the founders and CEO of Wildlight Entertainment, the studio behind Highguard, was involved in the creation of Call of Duty. At that time, he was Vice President of Global Brand Management for the shooter that every shooter fan knows today. Later, he was also responsible for the marketing of Titanfall and served as Vice President of “Strategy & Operations” at Apex Legends.
Also, the second founder of the studio, Chad Greiner, was previously involved in Apex Legends. He was the lead scripter of the battle royale shooter. Previously, he was a senior game designer on Titanfall 2.
Jason Mccord, the creative designer of Highguard, was the lead game designer of Titanfall 2 and Apex Legends.
And the three leaders are not alone:
Many other members of the studio have previously worked on games like Titanfall and Apex Legends, but also on Destiny, Helldivers 2, Valorant, Rainbow Six: Siege, Overwatch, and other well-known PvP games in various positions.
The Key to Success: Convincing the Target Audience with Unique Gameplay Just by Watching
The big question is now: What must Highguard do to be successful? At this point, I would usually give an assessment of whether I believe Highguard will be successful or not. But to be completely honest: I simply lack official information from the developers!
When the game launches on Monday, it could flop dramatically. The main reason would likely be that currently no one is talking about the shooter. It is quiet around Highguard, perhaps too quiet. As part of the potential target audience, I still know too little about the gameplay just days before release to have real interest. And if no one plays the shooter because it hasn’t managed to excite the target audience about the gameplay, then the game could still be good – then it fails.
In the world of Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok, it is too early to draw a conclusion. It doesn’t matter how little is currently known about the game and how little advertising the developers are doing: When Highguard comes out, and hundreds of thousands of gamers see it played by their favorite streamers on Twitch and YouTube, that will also be reflected in the player numbers. What matters is that it looks really good in those streams and that the streamers are having fun.
If viewers sit in front of their screens and think, “Hmm, actually looks really cool. I might download that,” that is enough for a successful release – especially since Highguard will be free-to-play, allowing everyone to try it out for free.
The past has shown that streamers have the power to help a game succeed! Whether it’s big titles like ARC Raiders and Battlefield 6 or small games like R.E.P.O., Peak, and Schedule 1 – hype was crucial. That is what Highguard needs.
On the evening before the completion of this article, the trophy list for Highguard on PS5 was revealed. This provided additional insights into the game but was not included in this article. Here you can find the related news on MeinMMO: A new free-to-play shooter has been persistently silent since its announcement, and 4 days before release, we are discovering features for the first time.
