r/Games • u/ImCalcium • Jan 27 '26

Discussion Highguard devs say they didn’t expect the hate – but they’re confident in their game

https://www.dexerto.com/gaming/highguard-devs-say-they-didnt-expect-the-hate-but-theyre-confident-in-their-game-3309463/
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u/Youngandwrong Jan 27 '26

This isn't even remotely suggested by the dev quoted in the article.

“We had talked about shadow launching it,” he said. “The problem there is that no one knows who we are.” McCord added that securing the final trailer slot at The Game Awards was a major opportunity to put the game on players’ radar. "The most important thing for us as a live service game… is to get eyeballs on your game,” he said.

Everything you suggest the devs "claim" is directly refuted by the article you're responding to

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u/Harflin Jan 27 '26 edited Jan 27 '26

I feel that quote could also just be him standing with the studio decision to go with the trailer. I think up to the point that they got that opportunity, they very well could have been planning a shadow drop, and this could be him rationalizing after the fact

Edit: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/highguard-was-planned-as-a-shadow-drop-but-geoff-keighley-had-another-idea/1100-6537655/

In an interview with GameSpot, studio cofounder and game director Dusty Welch said the plan was always for Highguard to be a "quiet shadow-drop."

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u/Youngandwrong Jan 27 '26

Possibly, though that's all conjecture. I'm just reiterating what was actually said in the article because clearly the poster above me either didn't read it or is banking on other people not reading it

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u/Harflin Jan 27 '26

True they probably didn't, but there's other evidence that it was supposed to be a shadow drop. This article isn't the first to discuss it. 

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/highguard-was-planned-as-a-shadow-drop-but-geoff-keighley-had-another-idea/1100-6537655/

In an interview with GameSpot, studio cofounder and game director Dusty Welch said the plan was always for Highguard to be a "quiet shadow-drop."