The studio behind MindsEye is reportedly closing down

Build a Rocket Boy, the studio founded by former Rockstar and Grand Theft Auto producer Leslie Benzies, is reportedly shutting down following a new wave of layoffs. The closure appears to bring an end to one of gaming’s strangest recent sagas, centred around the troubled launch of MindsEye.

As reported by Kotaku, multiple Build a Rocket Boy employees have taken to LinkedIn over the past few days to confirm that their time at the studio is “coming to an end”. Roles across level design, QA and production have all been affected. One of the studio’s principal talent acquisition partners also stated that he would be helping “BARB through till the very end”, indicating that this is a full wind‑down of the company rather than a restructuring. Sources familiar with the situation likewise confirmed that the studio is permanently closing its doors.

Build a Rocket Boy released MindsEye last year, positioning it as a GTA‑like open‑world game. The launch was rough, with technical issues and a lukewarm reception, and while patches improved performance, the game never managed to turn into a hit. In the aftermath, studio leadership made increasingly dramatic claims, alleging sabotage and paid smear campaigns against the game, accusations that we've seen little evidence of so far.

Despite that, many of the developers who worked on MindsEye have spoken positively about their time at Build a Rocket Boy, describing the project as a good experience even if the final result fell short. With the studio seemingly shutting down, the brief and chaotic story of MindsEye and its creators comes to an end.

KitGuru says: MindsEye never managed to recover from its poor launch and unfortunately, it looks like this studio won't get a second attempt to leave its mark on the industry. 

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