Mindseye, the cinematic open-world sci-fi game that dropped jaws with its visuals but triggered refunds with its bugs, just got its first major hotfix. Released June 13, this update tackles CPU, GPU, and memory-leak issues, alongside a smattering of annoying bugs like collision glitches and vehicle spawn errors.
It’s the first in a planned series of patches, but the question lingers: can Mindseye recover from one of the roughest AAA launches in recent memory?
Context: What Went Wrong at Launch
Let’s not sugarcoat it—Mindseye launched on June 10 for PC, PS5, and Xbox in a state many players described as “unplayable.” We’re talking:
- Game-breaking memory leaks crashing sessions left and right
- Glitched-out AI standing motionless during firefights
- Vehicles spawning halfway into buildings
- Wheels that didn’t spin (because physics took the day off)
Steam reviews tanked to ~40% positive. Metacritic scores hovered in the 30s and low 40s. Twitch streamers cut broadcasts mid-game due to bugs, and Sony reportedly began issuing PS5 refunds—a rare move that signals major dysfunction.
“This feels like an early tech demo someone accidentally put on Steam,” one Reddit user wrote.
And they weren’t alone.
What This Hotfix Actually Fixes
According to the patch notes, Hotfix #1 aims at core technical stabilization:
Performance Optimizations:
- Fixed memory leaks that led to crashing after 30–45 minutes
- Improved CPU/GPU utilization (no more 90% spikes on idle menus)
- Reduced loading stutter in major city hubs
Gameplay Bugs:
- Fixed collision issues that made players clip through walls
- Patched vehicle spawning logic to prevent floating cars
- Minor animation fixes (facial rigs, combat stances)
While the patch won’t magically reinvent the game, it does reduce the chances your rig will melt during a cutscene.
Stats That Matter
- Steam Concurrent Players: Down to ~560 from a launch peak of ~1,393
- Metacritic Score (PS5): 37
- User Ratings (Steam): Mostly Negative (only ~40% thumbs-up)
To put that in perspective: Gollum held on to more players a week post-launch. Yikes.
What’s Coming Next?
Build A Rocket Boy, the dev studio helmed by former Rockstar talent, laid out a roadmap with:
- Hotfix #2: Week of June 16 — Targeting wheel rotation bug, UI stutters, and audio looping issues
- Hotfix #3: End of June — Focused on broken AI and animation polish
- Community Q&A and transparency updates promised via their Discord
They’ve also issued a public apology, promising to “listen to feedback and rebuild trust.” But promises are easy. Fixing a launch disaster? Not so much.
Should You Play Mindseye Right Now?
Here’s the honest breakdown:
Play now if:
- You’re morbidly curious
- You have a beastly rig and high tolerance for jank
- You want to see Unreal Engine 5 put to work (even if badly)
Wait if:
- You care about gameplay more than graphics
- You hate losing progress to crashes
- You’d prefer to avoid a refund request
The current version still feels like a beta masquerading as a blockbuster. Even with Hotfix #1, there’s more duct tape than design.
Final Take: A Cautionary Tale in AAA Overreach
Mindseye was hyped as a next-gen experience, a bridge between movies and interactive storytelling. But all that ambition collapsed under poor optimization, lackluster mechanics, and rushed timelines.
This hotfix? A band-aid. What the game needs is reconstructive surgery.
Still, the studio seems committed to course-correcting. Whether that turns Mindseye into a comeback story or just another cautionary tale depends on the next few patches—and whether players still care by then.
