Gaming

Highguard Switches 5v5 Raid Mode from Limited-Time to Permanent Addition

Wildlight Entertainment responds to fan feedback and makes 5v5 a permanent game mode in the free-to-play hero shooter Highguard.

After strong support from fans and the community during its limited-time run, the Highguard devs are officially keeping the 5v5 Raid mode as a permanent feature.

Highguard devs make 5v5 raids official, despite performance concerns

The team at Wildlight Entertainment has been hard at work to respond to community feedback as the gaming community reacts to the launch of the new team shooter. The game already received Patch 1.0.4 to fix major issues days after launch and the team didn’t stop there.

Videos by VICE

Although the game was really designed to be all about 3v3 battles, strong feedback from the community has suggested that a 5v5 approach would make the game’s matches feel more exciting, improve the pace, and encourage more social interactions.

5v5 appeared as a limited-time mode to help show players what that would feel like and, after some very positive reactions, Wildlight Entertainment is ready to make the feature a permanent game mode.

One big warning that comes along with the change is that 5v5 may worsen the game’s performance as the team adjusts to supporting those team sizes. Switching from 6 players to 10 players in a match is a huge leap in terms of performances requirements and could cause a drop in frame rates, which is a big problem for a PvP-focused game.

Additionally, the change is likely to have a major impact on balance and the metagame. Luckily, the title is still new enough that a dominant metagame for the first season hasn’t really emerged yet. It will be interesting to see if any upcoming patches make big adjustments to address any balance issues as 5v5 becomes the dominant format.

A look back at Highguard’s Launch

Screenshot: Wildlight Entertainment
Screenshot: Wildlight Entertainment

The launch of Highguard has certainly been an interesting one to track. The game made waves when it was featured as the “one more thing” moment during The Game Awards 2025 and it has had a hard time shaking that moment. Although it did receive a ton of coverage, some gamers didn’t feel like a new hero shooter was worthy of the hype usually associated with a mic drop moment.

Despite the negative community reaction to the reveal, Wildlight Entertaiment seems to be dedicated to working hard and improving Highguard based on what the devs are hearing from the playerbase. Time will tell if the changes are enough to help the game stand out and build up a strong enough community to remain relevant in the coming months.

Highguard is available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series consoles.

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