Things don’t look good for the parents of Hitman: after releasing what has been called the worst game of the year, their future publishing plans are now uncertain. IO Interactive entered the publishing market with MindsEye, but the fiasco has left them unsure about continuing in this field.

The launch of MindsEye, the so-called “fake open world” created by Build A Rocket Boy, has been under fire since its release in June due to technical flaws and harsh criticism from players. It still tops Metacritic’s list of the worst games of 2025. Because of this, and because MindsEye is now synonymous with commercial disaster, IO Interactive – known as the creators of Hitman and the game’s publisher – is questioning its future in publishing.

Håkan Abrak, CEO of IO Interactive, explained how the partnership began: “We thought they had some cool ideas and a great world they were building, and we hope they’ll get another chance to show more of it in the future. We just wanted to help them distribute the game,” he told IGN.

IO Interactive May Step Away from Publishing Third-Party Games

Despite those intentions, MindsEye’s launch was rough. Abrak admitted the reception was “difficult” and that the result was not what either Build A Rocket Boy or IOI Partners had hoped for. Adding fuel to the fire, the studio led by former GTA producer Leslie Benzies was criticized after claiming that negative reviews had been “bought,” damaging the game’s reputation even further.

Although Abrak stressed that the studio is still working to regain the community’s trust and address the issues around MindsEye, this first setback as a publisher has forced IO Interactive to reconsider. “IO Interactive will publish its own games internally. External games published by IOI? That remains to be seen,” he said.

In short, IO Interactive’s future with third-party collaborations is in doubt. While MindsEye tries to recover performance and rebuild player confidence, the Danish company seems intent on focusing on its internal projects, ensuring that such problems won’t plague its future releases.

Source: 3djuegos