Developer Wildlight Entertainment has announced that the 5v5 mode added to PvP raid shooter Highguard—originally intended to be a time-limited mode over the weekend—is becoming a permanent addition to the game. In an announcement on Steam, the studio noted that the player count was fairly evenly split between the 3v3 and 5v5 modes, which prompted its decision to make the latter a permanent fixture.
“You’ve been asking, and we’re happy to share—5v5 Raid Mode is here to stay,” wrote Wildlight Entertainment. “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 5v5 mode was added in an update that also brought performance improvements to the game. The mode was initially labeled as an experimental one, which the studio has confirmed was not intended to replace the standard 3v3 raid by any means. “3v3 Raids are still there for people who enjoy it,” it said over the weekend.
To account for the larger player numbers per match, raids were switched from having 6 lives to 10. Respawn timers were also increased slightly to ensure that players would have ample time to plant or defuse generators. While the raids might support more players, however, the Firing Range is still limited to parties of 3.
With Wildlight Entertainment slowly plugging away at improving Highguard, CEO Dusty Welch has admitted that the original announcement trailer that closed off The Game Awards 2025 might not have been the studio’s best work. In a recent interview, he said, “We didn’t do a great job with our trailer. We own that.”
When asked about whether announcing the game at one of the biggest events of the year was the right decision overall, however, Welch noted that it’s a question he still asks himself. Speaking about the business side of things, he questioned himself about whether there was a different way to announce it. As for the toxicity that came about from disappointed fans hoping for a bigger reveal at the end of TGA 2025, he spoke about the challenges of dealing with these aspects.
“The toxicity is challenging, and it’s debatable whether we would’ve had more or less or the same by doing the Game Awards. I don’t know, and we’ll never know the answer to that. But I think that that’s an angle that has to be considered going forward for anyone in game development,” he said.
Highguard was released on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S in January, and initially launched to an overwhelmingly negative reception if Steam reviews are anything to go by. However, the developers’ work towards bringing steady improvements and addressing feedback has clearly not gone unnoticed. At the time of publishing, its Steam reviews have climbed up to “Mixed”, with 45 percent of them being positive.
For more details about Highguard, check out our review from just a couple of patches ago. Also check out our thoughts on why it hasn’t been landing with players.
