- Primary Subject: Highguard
- Key Update: A new report from Game File has revealed that Wildlight Entertainment—the studio behind the struggling PvP title Highguard—was secretly receiving financial backing from Tencent.
- Status: Critical / Potential Sunset (Website Offline)
- Last Verified: February 17, 2026
- Quick Answer: A new report reveals Tencent's TiMi Studio Group as the hidden financier.
It turns out Wildlight Entertainment, the "independent" studio behind Highguard, the latest high-profile PvP-focused game that didn't manage to stick the landing, leading to layoffs, was actually receiving backing from Tencent.
The report comes via Game File, with journalist Stephen Totilo, who stated that the massive Chinese conglomerate. Neither Tencent nor Wildlight commented on the report, but it would explain how an independent studio managed to finance such an expensive-looking endeavor.
Why Tencent would decide to keep its investment private is anyone's guess, but the company has been consistently putting money into different gaming companies without outright acquiring them. Perhaps the biggest example of this is Tencent's venture with Ubisoft. The Chinese conglomerate will financially back a specific subdivision of Ubisoft that will focus on the Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six IPs, investing €1.16 billion for a minority stake.
Tencent supporting an independent studio could simply mean they saw potential in Highguard and wanted a piece of the potential massive pie had the game taken off, as internal playtesting allegedly suggested. Sadly, the reality is completely different from the initial expectations. Now, only a skeleton crew has stayed on board to basically steer the ship in the right direction until the game is inevitably shut down or somehow finds a way to miraculously make a comeback that would rival No Man's Sky.
All that being said, the ties to Tencent could also explain why Highguard was selected to close out The Game Awards 2025. The narrative has been that Geoff Keighley was so impressed with the gameplay that he pleaded to showcase it at the event. The TGA advisory board does include Tencent Games' Senior Vice President Steven Ma. This is all mere speculation, however, and no rumors suggest that Highguard's inclusion was in fact anything but Keighley's own desire.
And that's it. Stick with us at Gfinityesports.com: your go-to source for all things gaming.