Highguard drew widespread criticism after its reveal at The Game Awards 2025 and now, with streamers and players finally getting hands-on time, the community reaction is impossible to ignore.
Ninja, TimTheTatman, Shroud, and MoistCr1TiKaL all played the new game Highguard. While opinions on the game differ from streamer to streamer, the community has a clear stance.
First Streamer Reactions To Highguard
The new PvP hero raid shooter Highguard launched on January 26th, and of course some of the biggest FPS streamers out there jumped in to try it. However, the game was off to a rocky start even before launch due to its infamous, generic Game Awards trailer. Since then, many people have been sceptical of the so-called “new breed of shooter”, and now that the game is out, large parts of the community have already written it off as a bad game.
Still, streamers hopped in to form their own opinions. Shroud stated that the game still needs optimization patches and more settings in the future, but despite that, he clearly enjoyed the core gameplay. As he put it:
"The gameplay is just good."
He praised the quality of the game overall and added that “they definitely thought this one out.”
MoistCr1TiKaL also released a video on the game’s launch, sharing his thoughts. In his opinion, the game is solid, but not unique:
"Like it's just a fine game. There is nothing particularly special about it, but it's definitely not like a really bad game that people are saying that it is."
He further emphasized that the final reveal slot at The Game Awards damaged the game more than it helped generate hype. In his opinion, the game would have been better received if it had been shadow-dropped, or at least not marketed as a new revolution in the shooter genre.
Ninja’s and TimTheTatman’s experience was probably the most hilarious of them all. They played together with a random teammate who said in voice chat, before even finishing his first match:
“Hey guys, I'm sorry. This game is very, very boring."
TimTheTatman couldn’t help but laugh about the situation. His verdict on the game is similar to others: it’s not perfect, but also nowhere near as bad as many people make it out to be. That said, when reacting to Steam reviews on stream, the general mood of the community quickly became very visible.
Steam Reviews And Community Sentiment
Once the focus shifts away from streams and toward player feedback, a different narrative begins to emerge. Steam reviews are notorious for being very direct at times, and this release is no different. The game’s review score on Steam currently sits at “mostly negative.”
Here are some of the reviews TimTheTatman reacted to:
"THIS MAKES ME WANT TO PLAY LEAGUE!"
"Concord ran so Highguard could crawl."
"I spent no money on this game and yet I want my money back."
As harsh as these reactions may be, they also highlight how quickly a narrative can form around a new release. Highguard is far from a perfect game, but judging it solely by early frustration, memes, or comparison-driven criticism may overlook what it does well. Several streamers pointed out that the core gameplay is solid, even if the surrounding systems still need work.
In the end, Highguard faces an uphill battle, entering a genre where many players are already experiencing clear hero shooter fatigue following titles like Concord. Whether the game can turn its reputation around will depend on future updates, developer support, and whether players are willing to look past the initial discourse and give it a fair chance.
For now, Highguard remains a game many are quick to dismiss, but perhaps one that deserves to be experienced before being written off entirely.
What do you think? Have you played Highguard? Let us know in the comments!
