IO Interactive, the developer of Hitman, has announced it is taking on publishing duties for MindsEye, the big-budget action adventure in the works from former Rockstar exec Leslie Benzies.
The development of MindsEye, at Benzies’ own Build A Rocket Boy studio, has been shrouded in secrecy ever since it was announced as a component of Everywhere – the company’s attempt at a Fortnite or Roblox game creation platform.
Today’s announcement curiously makes no reference to Everywhere, other than a line at the very bottom of IO’s press release which states “MindsEye is an Everywhere world”, suggesting some connection between the two remains. Everywhere’s website suggests the platform remains beta. Eurogamer has contacted Build A Rocket Boy for an update.
For now, at least, it looks like MindsEye is being pushed centre stage. It is described by IO as a “highly anticipated cinematic AAA, story-driven action-adventure thriller” created by Benzies, who held a key role at GTA maker Rockstar before his fractious departure in 2016.
“From day one, Build A Rocket Boy Studios has been focused on creating the next generation of compelling gaming and quality entertainment experiences,” Benzies said in a statement today.
“We can’t wait to share our first AAA premium game and ever-evolving universe, MindsEye, with the world. There is no finer partner than IO Interactive to publish our first title, with their strong understanding of community culture, premium action-adventure games, and a best-in-class publishing team, we really look forward to partnering with them on our new blockbuster journey.”
Eurogamer visited Build A Rocket Boy’s flagship Edinburgh studio early last year, when Everywhere was being seen as the studio’s major focus. A game-creation platform built using Unreal Engine, it looked ambitious, if well funded by money from investor NetEase.
Benzies’ description today of MindsEye being an ever-evolving universe may refer to what he discussed with me previously of the game being episodic, with different chapters adding further forms of gameplay. (The connection to Everywhere, here, was that the game’s assets and gameplay would then become available to players to create their own experiences using these parts.)
Build A Rocket Boy was originally founded in 2016 and has a network of studios globally in Edinburgh, Budapest, Montpellier and in China. While there’s no mention today of when we’ll see MindsEye arrive, a launch in 2025 would see the studio finally release its first project after nine years. (The launch would also align with GTA 6, amusingly.)
Earlier this year, the studio confirmed it had suffered job losses globally, a month after completing a fresh $110m funding round.