After a weekend surge that saw Highguard’s player count on PCs jump from the depths to something that could be built upon, largely thanks to the introduction of a 5v5 Raid Mode that was originally billed as a “limited time event,” developer Wildlight Entertainment has elected to make the 5v5 mode a permanent fixture of Highguard moving forward.
In a post shared on social media, the team acknowledged the mode’s popularity, which helped inform their decision.
“We appreciate everyone hopping in over the weekend to give the mode a try. We saw a fairly even split between 3v3 and 5v5, which helped inform our decision.”
The need for something bigger than 3v3 or the introduction of bots or other fodder was one of the biggest talking points following Highguard’s release last Monday. By the end of the week, Highguard introduced the mode amidst a flurry of negative reviews and a free-falling player base.
However, something changed over the weekend, as the live-service title was able to maintain a somewhat stable count on PC.
Good News Highguard Fans, It Isn’t The Worst-Reviewed Game Of 2026
The Highguard reviews are starting to hit, and while they’re bad, they could be a lot worse.
After launching with 97,249 players and then finding itself bottoming out in the several thousands, Highguard was seeing consistent concurrent counts in the 11 to 13,000 range. Make no mistake, it is still nowhere near where things were at launch, but it’s obviously better.
Those Who’ve Played Highguard Are Happy With The News
Over on Reddit, fans celebrated word that 5v5 would be a permanent fixture moving forward. That should come as no surprise, as the players who’ve genuinely engaged with the game do seem to enjoy it.
“It definitely made a very big difference,” one user wrote. “Matches were more fast paced and frantic. There’s still a lot of issues i have with the game, but this is a good step.”
“This is genuinely super impressive,” another player wrote. “The devs’ ability to keep the finger on the pulse of the community and make changes accordingly and quickly is something you just don’t see in the industry these days. They def deserve commendment for their response.”
Elsewhere, it has seen its once “Negative” status on Steam shift to “Mixed,” the result of more people engaging with the game. There’s undeniably a lot of work ahead, but it is a positive step for one of gaming’s biggest stories so far.
- Released
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January 26, 2026
- Developer(s)
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Wildlight Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
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Wildlight Entertainment
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
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Full
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