Mindseye: The big GTA competitor is getting a lot of criticism, but the studio boss calls it “bought.”

Mindseye and its platform Everywhere are among the most exciting open-world projects of recent years. But shortly before release, the studio boss is losing his cool.

GTA 6 will no longer be released in 2025. This should have been a good opportunity for Mindseye, the ambitious open-world game from former Rockstar developer Leslie Benzies. But shortly before its release on June 10, 2025, the title seems to be faltering. The CEO of the studio Build A Rocket Boy has responded to criticism of the game by accusing Mindseye of a targeted campaign.

Clear criticism shortly before release

After Mindseye showed gameplay for the first time in February 2025, a new and significantly longer trailer with game footage was recently released. In addition, YouTubers and streamers were apparently allowed to try out the game in recent days. However, their conclusions were mixed, and some expressed considerable criticism of the open-world game:

• Technically, Mindseye is said to be in an unfinished state and plagued by bugs and other problems.

• The driving physics are also criticized as stiff, which is obviously problematic for a game that repeatedly features prominent car rides and chases.

• The enemy AI is reportedly not particularly sophisticated, and enemies are said to simply run towards us in combat.

• The open world is said to be very empty and filled with little content.

One hundred percent bought?

As reported by Eurogamer, among others, Mark Gerhard, the CEO of the development studio, is not taking this criticism particularly well. In an exchange on the game’s Discord server, he stated when asked that he was 100% certain that all critical voices were financed by someone who wanted to harm Mindseye and its developers.

There are organized effortsto prevent Leslie Benzies and his development studio from succeeding. According to Gerhard, negative reactions to published content mostly come from bots designed to badmouth the game and the studio.

With his statements and unsubstantiated accusations, Mark Gerhard is likely to do more damage to his game and studio than mixed previews could ever do.