MindsEye Studio hit with mass layoffs days after DLC launches

Things continue to go from bad to worse for Build A Rocket Boy, as the studio behind 2025's worst reviewed game, MindsEyehas been hit by another round of layoffs. While the studio has yet to acknowledge the mass layoffs at the studio, which have taken place just days after the launch of MindsEyes first DLC, a new report claims that around 170 developers have been hit with layoffs this week.

Founded in 2016, Build A Rocket Boy was established by Leslie Benzies, a former Rockstar North president who had become well known for his work with Grand Theft Auto series. With an industry veteran at the helm, the gaming world expected big things from Build A Rocket Boy. Alas, the studio's first title, MindsEyewas one of the biggest flops in video game history. Not only was the game panned by critics, but it was also heavily criticized by gamers for its boring world, weak story, and numerous bugs and performance issues. When all was said and done, MindsEye became the worst reviewed game of 2025, with an abysmal Metacritic score of 39.

Family

This failure from 2025 proves that you shouldn't try to compete with Grand Theft Auto

MindsEye's disastrous release shows the challenges of trying to compete with Grand Theft Auto.

MindsEye Studio Build A Rocket Boy suffers more layoffs

After the disastrous launch of MindsEyeBuild A Rocket Boy experienced mass layoffs in June 2025 and more in March 2026. Now, according to a report from Kotaku, about 170 employees have been laid off this week, bringing the total number of employees down to about 80. Build A Rocket Boy's co-CEO, Mark Gerhard, who has been a very vocal studio, has been one of the biggest bosses to date. a comment on the latest round of layoffs. But many developers have taken to LinkedIn to announce they are leaving the studio. This includes QA analysts, level designers, sound designers and more.

Who is that character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Who is that character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Easy (7.5s) Medium (5.0s) Hard (2.5s) Permadeath (2.5s)

When Build A Rocket Boy experienced layoffs earlier this year, the company's co-CEO acknowledged the growing difficulties the video game industry has faced in recent years, while noting that Build A Rocket Boy is not immune to the same pressures. Gerhard then announced another number of layoffs at the studio, calling it a “deeply painful decision”. The exact number of layoffs was unconfirmed, but with the latest round of layoffs hitting the studio this week, it looks like the studio behind MindsEye now working with very minimal staff.

Gerhard then used the rest of his statement to discuss a theory that claimed MindsEye been exposed to internal sabotage. The CEO has now suggested on several occasions that the game's failure is due to internal and external factors that are now under investigation. These claims date back to before the game was even released, as Gerhard suggested that early hands-on previews were blasted by critics as part of a “paid effort”. This theory then continued after the launch, but resulted in employees publishing a joint letter demanding an apology from managers for what they described as disrespect, mismanagement and mishandling of the termination process.

Balance the critics' averages

Light (6) Medium (8) Hard (10)

Despite these issues, Build A Rocket Boy has persevered MindsEyeeven released a major content update just last week. Known as Blacklisted, the DLC sees players take on the role of Julia Black, a world-class assassin, on a mission to Redrock City to eliminate two important targets. As previously promised by Gerhard, the mission focuses on espionage, deception and sabotage, which is apparently intended to mirror what the studio has experienced in real life with the launch of MindsEye.