When it comes to messy videogame launches, MindsEye has certainly been a hot contender. The first third-party game to be published under Hitman developer IO Interactive’s Partners programme, its debut has been rather sour—poor sales, a Mostly Negative rating on Steam, and layoffs at developer Build a Rocket Boy.
That’s not to mention the bizarre accusations being flung around from its co-CEOs. Former Grand Theft Auto producer Leslie Benzies blamed the game’s failure on “internal and external saboteurs,” a sentiment that had been echoed by Mark Gerhard just a couple of months prior when he popped off on Discord to claim that the negative reactions to the game were “100%” financed by someone. A mystery someone.
It’s enough of a palaver to make anyone wary of trying again, and IOI CEO Hakan Abrak certainly seems apprehensive to re-enter the lion’s den. During a recent interview with IGN, Abrak reflected on the initial response to MindsEye: “It was a tough reception,” he said.
“It wasn’t what they hoped for, and also what we didn’t hope for at IOI Partners. They’re working hard on turning that around to regain the trust of the gamers out there, and they have tons of potential and content they’re working on. So hopefully they’ll succeed with that in the future.”
When asked about whether IOI would continue to partner with other studios as a publisher, Abrak’s response was rather tepid. “So, IO Interactive will publish our own games internally,” he said. “IOI Partners? That remains to be seen.”
Honestly, I can’t blame Abrak. The critical panning speaks for itself, including from our own Tyler Wilde. He said the early hours of MindsEye were “pretty bad,” writing: “I might be more willing to give MindsEye the benefit of the doubt if there were something cool to latch onto so far, but the characters are dull and the deep thoughts are things like this loading screen quote: ‘In his research Dr. Morrison identified a paradox. A moment where machine learning would evolve past our capabilities of control and spread like a virus.’
“Is that a paradox? I don’t see what the contradiction is, but I’m not a doctor.”
With IOI busy at work trying to get its own stuff published, including upcoming Bond origin story 007 First Light, I wouldn’t be surprised if the studio is looking to keep its cards a little closer to its chest for the foreseeable future.
