Highguard, the new hero shooter that debuted at the highest profile finale slot of the highest profile game showcase of the year, The Game Awards, had not said a single word about the game ahead of its Monday, January 26 launch. Until yesterday.
The complete radio silence was broken by an announcement of an announcement, the first tweet from the studio since December 11, saying that there would be an “in-depth look at Highguard direct from the studio.”
This would be coming just hours before the actual launch, it seems. This would be the first explanation of the “raid shooter,” which was shown off in an ill-received trailer that showed off magic, guns and horses, though it explained little about its concept. That will happen…on launch day.
Many have said that the team working on the game, previously of Apex Legends, was doing “an Apex Legends,” as in, a shadow drop of the game that no one saw coming. I argued that this is, in fact, stupid, as it was revealed in the most-hyped finale slot of The Game Awards, and at that time, it revealed its actual release date. That is not a shadow drop. Starting your marketing game and explaining it on release day, especially when it’s not something normal like a Battle Royale, is not a also not a shadow drop.
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Has Highguard’s mystery worked in its favor? I don’t know. I have been doing a “Highguard watch” daily, looking for any information at all, and that has just been a website that says almost nothing, and then this week, leaked trophy information from the game. Anything else will come on Monday. It’s a risk, to be sure, and ultimately, no, I don’t think it was a good idea to go radio silent for a month and a half and only talk about the game you already revealed on literal release day. Especially so, given that the initial reception of the trailer was poor, so you would think you’d want to explain how it actually works to change hearts and minds before launch.
Again, Apex was so good at the time it didn’t matter and was a big hit despite zero marketing. Could Highguard do the same, despite the earlier reveal? I don’t know. While no, that trailer wasn’t great, we simply don’t know enough about the concept and execution to make that judgment. Once again, we are in a “Concord 2” label loop, but given that Highguard is free, everyone can log in and see what all the fuss has not been about. See you Monday.
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