With 1 week to live, Highguard is going out kicking with a final update adding a new character, speedy account progression, and more as devs thank "everyone who has played" the FPS

Key art for Highguard showing Kai riding a bear, Atticus with the Shieldbreaker, and Scarlet, crouched, aiming down sights
(Image credit: Wildlight Entertainment)

Despite Highguard shutting down in one week, there's one last update now live on the ill-fated FPS. A new weapon, another character, and more progression are included in the curtain call patch, to give people one last glimmer of what Wildlight Entertainment was going for.

"For our final patch, we'd like to thank everyone who has played and is still playing Highguard," the studio says in the patch notes. "Even though we are shutting the game down, we are excited to give our remaining players one last big update to keep you entertained over the weekend."

“Wardens” | Episode 1 Story Cinematic | Highguard - YouTube “Wardens” | Episode 1 Story Cinematic | Highguard - YouTube
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The Raider's for those who're constantly on the offensive; the Harvester for getting more Vesper; the Treasure Hunter's about increasing your loot; and Protector is for the support and defensive players. A good starting spread that covers the central playstyles.

Everyone starts at zero, and given the situation, XP is being awarded especially quickly, and you can reset at any time for free, to allow players to see what's mechanically possible. Koldo is the new Warden – he passively protects his allies, and his Battle Cry creates a shield that heals teammates faster.

To top it all off, a quickfire long-range double-barrel shotgun's been added as well. The Switchback, as it's called, offers high damage up close, and you can aim down sights for longer range shots too.

A decent send-off for Highguard, a game that went from the soaring heights of closing The Game Awards back in December to the current situation. It's a shame all around, but at least some more of the work the team created is seeing the light of day, if only for a brief period.

Games like Highguard are just "gambling by investors" who "know ahead of time a flop is likely," says indie legend: "Sucks for the developers who get caught in the churn."

Anthony McGlynn
Contributing Writer

Anthony is an Irish entertainment and games journalist, now based in Glasgow. He previously served as Senior Anime Writer at Dexerto and News Editor at The Digital Fix, on top of providing work for Variety, IGN, Den of Geek, PC Gamer, and many more. Besides Studio Ghibli, horror movies, and The Muppets, he enjoys action-RPGs, heavy metal, and pro-wrestling. He interviewed Animal once, not that he won’t stop going on about it or anything.

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