In a move that signals both a technical reset and a strategic realignment, Build A Rocket Boy has released Update 7 for MindsEye, the studio’s embattled sci‑fi action title. The patch focuses heavily on campaign flow, AI behavior, and mission fairness—but the update’s presentation also contains a subtle but telling omission: IOI Interactive Partners, previously listed as the game’s publishing partner, is nowhere to be found.
A Troubled Launch Still Haunting the Studio
MindsEye launched on June 10, 2025, positioned as a cinematic, futuristic third‑person adventure blending robotics, neural implants, and corporate intrigue. Despite its ambitious scope and pseudo–open world, the game quickly became one of 2025’s most disappointing releases.
- Critics Recommend: 8% (OpenCritic)
- Player Satisfaction: 48% (Steam)
- Widespread complaints:
- Severe performance issues
- Game‑breaking bugs
- Shallow mission design
- Unreliable AI
- Navigation frustrations
The backlash forced Build A Rocket Boy into months of damage control, promising a long‑term roadmap to “reset the brand” and rebuild trust.
Update 7: A Soft Relaunch, Not a Content Drop
The newly released Update 7 is framed as the beginning of a “new phase of ongoing development,” prioritizing stability and playability over new story content.
Key Improvements
- Campaign flow smoothing
- More reliable mission guidance (blip visibility increased from 100m → 1000m)
- Fairer mission fail conditions
- Improved ally/enemy AI behavior
- Enhanced audio cues and restored missing music
- Reduced motion blur and improved animations
- Numerous bug fixes across missions, AI, UI, and visuals
Deluxe Edition owners also receive the Silva E‑Series, a full street‑circuit race in Redrock with global leaderboards.
The update is framed as part of a steady cadence of improvements leading toward a future expansion, multiplayer mode, and additional story content.
The Backstory: A Publishing Partnership Under Scrutiny
When MindsEye was first revealed, Build A Rocket Boy surprised many by partnering with IOI Interactive Partners A/S, a publishing arm associated with IO Interactive—the studio behind Hitman and the upcoming 007 project.
The partnership raised eyebrows for several reasons:
- IOI had not historically acted as a third‑party publisher.
- Build A Rocket Boy, founded by former Rockstar North president Leslie Benzies, was expected to self‑publish.
- The collaboration appeared to be a strategic experiment for both companies.
But after MindsEye’s disastrous launch, rumors began circulating in late 2025 that the partnership had quietly dissolved. Neither company publicly addressed the speculation.
The New Update Quietly Confirms What Fans Suspected
Update 7 rollout, IOI Interactive Partners is no longer listed anywhere—not in the patch notes, not in the publisher field, not in the promotional materials.
This is a notable shift because:
- Previous updates and listings explicitly credited IOI Interactive Partners.
- Images labeled “via IO Interactive Partners,” but the publisher field at the bottom still lists IO Interactive Partners A/S—likely a remnant of older metadata rather than an active credit.
- Build A Rocket Boy’s own messaging now refers only to “the MindsEye Team,” with no mention of IOI.
While not an official announcement, the absence is conspicuous and aligns with industry chatter that the partnership ended sometime after the game’s launch fallout.
Why the Split Makes Sense
Industry analysts have speculated that IOI may have stepped back to focus on its own major projects including preparing for 007 First Light video game and the yet unrevealed explicitly Project Fantasy.
Of course, the negative reception of MindsEye made the partnership more liability than asset and added to the probable move that Build A Rocket Boy may be restructuring to regain full control of its publishing pipeline.
The quiet removal suggests a mutual, low‑profile disengagement rather than a public breakup.
What This Means for MindsEye Going Forward
Update 7 is clearly intended as a turning point. Build A Rocket Boy is:
- Reasserting ownership of the game’s direction
- Rebuilding community trust through transparency and iteration
- Preparing for a more substantial relaunch later in 2026
But the disappearance of IOI’s name signals something deeper: MindsEye is now fully a Build A Rocket Boy product—creatively, technically, and now, seemingly, in publishing as well.
A Reset in More Ways Than One
MindsEye’s Update 7 is more than a patch. It’s a quiet rebranding effort, a structural reset, and an implicit confirmation that the IOI partnership chapter has closed.
Whether this new independence helps Build A Rocket Boy steer the game toward redemption remains to be seen—but for the first time since launch, the studio appears to be charting its own path forward.
