Build A Rocket Boy, the Edinburgh-based studio behind MindsEye, has issued redundancy notices to its approximately 300 UK employees following the game's troubled launch. Sources confirm similar at-risk notifications were sent to staff at PlayFusion, which BARB acquired in late 2024. PlayFusion's team - working on the upcoming FPS Ascendant - saw its CEO Mark Gerhard become BARB's co-CEO as part of the acquisition.
IGN previously reported BARB initiated layoffs after MindsEye's release. The legally mandated 45-day consultation period began June 23 under UK employment laws, which require this process when proposing over 100 redundancies within 90 days. The studio currently employs about 300 UK staff with 200 additional international employees.
BARB stated the restructuring aims to streamline operations, allowing the studio to focus on maintaining MindsEye while supporting long-term projects. The developer had previously expressed regret over the game's technical issues, pledging systematic fixes for performance problems, glitches, and AI bugs, with some patches already deployed.
MindsEye's rocky debut led to cancelled promotional streams and widespread refund requests across platforms, including Sony's typically strict PlayStation Store. Steam analytics show the game peaked at 3,302 concurrent players at launch before dropping sharply to just 46 daily players recently. Current Steam charts show only 26 active players, with the title maintaining a 'mostly negative' user rating.
The troubled action-adventure was originally conceived as part of Everywhere, BARB's adult-oriented creative platform led by ex-Grand Theft Auto chief Leslie Benzies. After shifting focus to MindsEye as a standalone title, the game has failed to meet commercial expectations.
Studio sources revealed Benzies addressed employees on July 2, asserting BARB would recover and relaunch MindsEye successfully. During the private call, he reportedly blamed the game's struggles on both internal and external detractors. These remarks echoed previous controversial statements by co-CEO Mark Gerhard, who had alleged an organized campaign to damage the game's reputation - claims quickly denied by industry peers including IO Interactive's leadership.
While some at BARB hope for a comeback story, impending layoffs raise concerns about the studio's ability to deliver promised post-launch content, including multiplayer features. The team recently rolled out its third console update, promising PC fixes would follow based on extensive player feedback analysis.
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