{"id":1225079,"date":"2026-02-24T11:15:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T11:15:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.polygon.com\/?p=606523"},"modified":"2026-02-24T11:15:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T11:15:09","slug":"what-is-going-on-with-mindseye-were-trying-to-figure-that-out-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/what-is-going-on-with-mindseye-were-trying-to-figure-that-out-too\/","title":{"rendered":"What is going on with Mindseye? We\u2019re trying to figure that out, too"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On Tuesday, Build a Rocket Boy released MindsEye<\/em> after a pre-launch period that was anything but normal. From one executive alleging that bad actors were funding a pre-launch smear campaign<\/a> against MindsEye<\/em> to other executives departing the studio<\/a> one week before it came out, everything surrounding MindsEye<\/em> has been weird<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

A representative for Build a Rocket Boy and publisher IOI Partners confirmed that Polygon would not be receiving a review code. Other outlets, like Eurogamer<\/a>, have also confirmed they did not receive review codes. At the time of this writing, one day after its launch, there are not enough critic reviews for MindsEye<\/em> to have a metascore on Metacritic<\/a>. Polygon has reached out to Build a Rocket Boy for comment regarding the launch of MindsEye<\/em> and its decision to withhold review keys, and will update this story when the company responds.<\/p>\n

The brave souls who took the plunge on launch day and purchased MindsEye<\/em> via Steam offer a look into why Build a Rocket Boy probably didn\u2019t want critical reviews to go live before the launch: With over 1,200 user reviews on Steam at the time of this writing, MindsEye<\/em> is sitting with a \u201cmixed\u201d reception<\/a>. Some reviews show players have refunded the game (Steam allows for refunds within two weeks from purchase if you\u2019ve played less than two hours of the game) while other reviewers have commented they now understood why Build a Rocket Boy didn\u2019t want reviews live before MindsEye<\/em> launched. Essentially, MindsEye<\/em> is unoptimized with a myriad of performance issues and poor enemy AI, players say.<\/p>\n

One Steam review<\/a> has picked up traction, causing a rumor that the opening of MindsEye<\/em> is overstuffed with cutscenes to push players past that two-hour playtime mark \u2014 and out of the window for refunds. However, after skimming through various playthrough uploads on YouTube, there definitely seems to be a fair amount of cutscenes at the opening of the game, but players will also be driving and shooting at the start of the game in between all those cutscenes. (This appears to be more of a case of a studio poorly pacing the opening hours of its debut title rather than a nefarious scheme.)<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n