Highguard — First Impressions
1/29/2026 • gaming
Highguard is a free-to-play PvP raid shooter from Wildlight Entertainment, a studio formed by industry veterans behind games like Apex Legends and Titanfall. It launched on January 26, 2026 on PC (Steam), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S with full cross-play and cross-progression support.
How the Game Works
Matches are played with two teams of three players on a large map. Each game is split into multiple phases:
Base Defense Phase
At the start, each team reinforces their base. You can choose between a few defensive options to prepare for what’s coming.Loot Phase
Players spread out across the map to gather gear and resources.Shieldbreaker Phase
This is basically capture-the-flag. Teams fight over the Shieldbreaker and try to deliver it to the enemy base to break their shield.
If no one captures it in time, the game goes into overtime with no respawns, which raises the stakes.Raid Phase
Once a shield is broken, the attacking team raids the enemy base and tries to destroy their generator to win the round.
This loop repeats until one team loses all their points and the match ends.
It's an interesting game — not revolutionary, but not terrible either.
After spending some time with it, I’d describe it as a mix of MOBA, battle royale, capture the flag, Minecraft BedWars, and a bit of Rainbow Six Siege, all wrapped into a hero-based experience.
From a presentation standpoint, Highguard looks good, but it also looks very familiar. The art style, lighting, and overall vibe are polished, yet it’s hard not to think of other live-service PvP games that looked similar and didn’t last. That might just be coincidence, but it does make the game feel less distinct at first glance.
That said, the game does have its own identity once you start playing.
The movement and mounts are easily one of the strongest parts of the experience. The maps are large, and without mounts the game would feel painfully slow. Movement feels smooth and responsive, and it’s clear the game was designed around constant repositioning and traversal. I genuinely enjoyed getting around the map, and it’s a core reason the gameplay works at all.
Highguard is also very system-heavy:
-There are heroes (Wardens) with abilities inspired by other games
-Multiple phases per match (fortify, loot, objective, raid)
-Tools, mounts, base defenses, and raid mechanics
None of these systems are bad — they’re actually well put together — but nothing here feels truly new. It’s more like a carefully assembled mix of existing ideas rather than a bold reinvention of the genre.
In terms of progression, the game already includes:
-A free battle-pass–style system
-A large number of emotes at launch
-Cosmetic unlocks tied to playtime rather than paywalls
That part is handled fairly well so far. I didn’t feel pressured to spend money, and progression felt reasonable during my time with the game.
Performance-wise, my experience on PS5 was mostly smooth. I didn’t run into any major bugs or crashes, which is nice, especially for a game that’s still early in its lifecycle. However, matchmaking took a long time, which isn’t a great sign. Combined with the small team size (3v3), it sometimes feels like the game could really benefit from either more players per team or more teams per match.
Overall, Highguard feels ambitious but cautious. It’s trying to do a lot, and most of it works — but it doesn’t take many risks. With continued updates and balance changes, it could maintain a small, dedicated player base. Still, it doesn’t feel like a game that’s going to explode in popularity.
