Facepalm: Build A Rocket Boy has found a new way to upset the people who made MindsEye. On Saturday, the studio flew a group of fans to its Edinburgh headquarters for a travel-and-accommodation-paid playtest of the game's next release, while former employees and union supporters protested outside.
The event, first announced on the company's Discord server in June, saw Build A Rocket Boy cover selected community members' flights to Scotland, two nights of hotel accommodation, and return journeys. Participants were also given the opportunity to meet members of the development team.
The fans were there to test new features of the critically panned MindsEye. Former employee Isaac Hudd argued that the playtest could have been conducted remotely.
The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB), which organized the July 11 protest and represents some current and former Build A Rocket Boy employees, accused the studio of misusing funds following repeated rounds of layoffs.
The union also claimed that fans were being brought in to perform testing duties that would ordinarily be handled by professional staff. IWGB Game Workers branch chair Spring McParlin-Jones called the event "a waste of money, and a kick in the teeth for the fired workers."
I'd encourage you to watch this speech from former employee, Isaac Hudd. Also, given this is yet *another* Edinburgh-based studio at the heart of *another* controversy affecting game workers in the UK, you'll spot some familiar faces from Rockstar who turned up to show their solidarity on the day.
– Chris Bratt (@chrisbratt.bsky.social) July 13, 2026 at 12:30 PM
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The union also alleged that Build A Rocket Boy recently cut long-serving members of its community team before hiring a player from the studio's Discord server, with no sign of a formal interview process or publicly advertised position.
Former employee Ben Newbon described the playtest as "little more than a grandstanding gesture" from management.
MindsEye launched in June 2025 as the worst-reviewed game of the year, with Metacritic scores of 39 on PC and 29 on PS5. Build A Rocket Boy began a redundancy process less than two weeks after the game's launch, with further rounds following in March and May 2026. The IWGB estimates that between 250 and 300 employees have been laid off since June 2025, although some promotional material for the protest put the figure at more than 400.
Co-CEO Mark Gerhard, meanwhile, blamed the game's failure on criminal activity, espionage, and corporate sabotage. The studio released a DLC mission, Blacklisted, that promised to share evidence of the plot, but it didn't deliver on these claims.
IWGB members are separately pursuing legal action against Build A Rocket Boy over alleged data protection violations involving Teramind monitoring software. The union claims the program was installed on employees' computers without their knowledge and could record keystrokes, screen activity, and microphone audio. Build A Rocket Boy removed the software in March after more than 40 workers signed a collective grievance, but the union says the company has not provided sufficient information about what data was collected or how it was used.
Hudd, addressing the crowd outside the office, had a message for management: "jobless does not mean toothless."
A Build A Rocket Boy spokesperson gave the following statement:
"Saturday's playtest is about our players and the future of MindsEye. Community playtests are a routine part of game development that also gives us invaluable feedback as we continue improving the experience. We're grateful to everyone taking part, and we're focused on listening to our community and continuing to build what's next for MindsEye."