The situation at Build A Rocket Boy (BARB) — the UK-based studio behind MindsEye — has taken a dramatic turn following the game’s disastrous launch, casting a long shadow over the future of the company and its 300+ UK employees.
Key Developments:
🔴 Mass Layoff Notices Issued
- Approximately 300 UK staff have received redundancy notices, triggering a mandatory 45-day consultation period under UK law (required for 100+ layoffs in 90 days).
- The same warning signs have reportedly been sent to PlayFusion, a studio acquired by BARB in late 2024, suggesting broader restructuring across the organization.
- PlayFusion, led by former co-CEO Mark Gerhard (now co-CEO of BARB), is developing Ascendant, a fast-paced FPS originally slated for 2024 release — now potentially at risk amid the turmoil.
📉 MindsEye’s Launch Was a Commercial and Critical Failure
- MindsEye, a story-driven action-adventure game, launched with extreme technical issues, including:
- Severe performance drops
- Glitches and bugs
- Unpredictable AI behavior
- Steam stats paint a bleak picture:
- Peak concurrent players: 3,302 at launch
- 24-hour low: 46 players
- Current player count: 26 (as of latest data)
- User review rating: "Mostly Negative" (based on Steam's algorithm)
- Players have successfully obtained refunds from Sony, a rare occurrence given Sony’s strict refund policies.
🔄 Post-Launch Response: Promises vs. Reality
- BARB has released three post-launch updates (including one for consoles), claiming to have analyzed "hundreds of hours of gameplay" and player feedback.
- Despite these efforts, the game remains far from playable for many, with core features like the promised multiplayer mode still delayed or unconfirmed.
- The studio has canceled all sponsored streams, a sign of desperation and a retreat from marketing momentum.
💬 Internal Leadership Drama and Conspiracy Theories
- Leslie Benzies, former Grand Theft Auto design lead and founder of Everywhere (the original vision for MindsEye as a "Roblox for adults"), addressed staff via a brief video call on July 2.
- He claimed the company would "recover and relaunch" MindsEye.
- Blamed failures on "internal and external saboteurs", implying sabotage via fake reviews, paid takedowns, and spam bots.
- Mark Gerhard, co-CEO, previously made similar claims, stating there was a "concerted effort" to "trash the game and the studio."
- These allegations were denied by IO Interactive’s head, who dismissed them as baseless and damaging to industry trust.
🏢 The Bigger Picture: A Fractured Vision
- MindsEye was once envisioned as a next-gen adult creation platform, but BARB pivoted to a single-title focus.
- The game failed to live up to expectations, and the company now faces existential questions:
- Can MindsEye be salvaged?
- Is the team still capable of delivering on its roadmap?
- Can BARB survive without major investment or a turnaround?
🤔 Employee Morale and Uncertainty
- With 45-day consultations underway, employees are in limbo, fearful of job loss despite having poured years into the project.
- While there’s internal hope for redemption — a "comeback story" — skepticism is growing.
- Many now question whether leadership’s blame-shifting narratives (e.g., "spammers destroyed us") are deflecting from deeper issues: poor development management, overambitious scope, and an unproven business model.
Final Assessment:
MindsEye’s failure isn’t just a game launch gone wrong — it’s a full-scale studio crisis.
- Technical and design flaws were real and severe.
- Leadership’s response — blaming external actors, canceling marketing, and firing staff — risks deepening the trust gap with players and employees alike.
- The industry is watching: This case could become a textbook example of how not to launch a high-stakes, unproven IP in a crowded market.
For now, the fate of Build A Rocket Boy hangs in the balance. The studio may yet restructure, rebuild, and deliver on promises. But without transparency, reliable updates, and a return to player trust, a recovery seems increasingly unlikely.
One thing is certain: the dream of a "Roblox for adults" is not dead — but it may not be MindsEye that brings it to life.
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