Wayfinder is the game that I played over the weekend with a few co-op players. It was literally two kings and a beast. Consider this my review of the game, even though it has been out for years now. I just wanted to chat about a game that is just that, even in the atmosphere of 2026. It is not rare, but Wayfinder hits all the nostalgia notes of old games.
What Caused the Shift?
Airship Syndicate started this game as an MMORPG with Liver For Service implications, but why the switch? Come to find out their situation was dire losing player count, bad reviews, and the loss of their publisher Digital Extreme. Usually, when companies face such failure, the game would have been delisted and shut down. Airship Syndicate just said, “Hold my beer!” and changed their route to “buy-to-play”. That was a shocking move and a good one at the end of the day.
But, key features on the shift from google.
- Failed Launch & Financial Trouble: The game had mostly negative reviews, technical issues, and a rapidly declining player base.
- Publisher Drop: Publisher Digital Extremes dropped the game to focus on in-house projects, leaving the team without the funding necessary for MMO maintenance.
- Saving the Game: Airship Syndicate decided to transform the game into a “buy-to-play” title with peer-to-peer functionality rather than let it be shut down.
- Shift in Monetization: The game removed all microtransactions, adopting a single-player Action RPG (ARPG) model to improve gameplay and loot, often compared to Remnant from the Ashes.
Why the Hype in 2026?
First off, Wayfinder had an impressive sale back in 2025 for a bit under $8, which was a good deal. It also provided crossplay and cross saves with a 3 palyer co-op style story mode. In a gaming world that is somewhat saturated with Looter Shooters or Hero Shooters. Some of us just want a good single-player/co-op experience. The “buy-to-play” business model is not gone, but most hardly see it. Especially how some companies are trying to turn some single-player games into Live-For-Service with microtransactions. It has been a greedy time.
Wayfinder is a breath of fresh air, just being a game with in game currency and play to unlock mechanics. The story is pretty good too, with a decent open-world experience. As the host, you take your team through dungeons and deal with environmental events while unlocking the characters. There is a skill tree system as well for each character as you unlock them, and you can switch between characters on the fly.
It is the learning that makes it great too, utilizing the affinity, talents, echose and abilities that fit the play style of a character. I stopped myself from looking up things and just went with what I needed. The game does let you know what kind of characters you are using, so go by that and figure it out.
Initial Takeaway from Born with a Controller:
In this day and age, finding out a company that didn’t just throw away their game. They figured it out and gave players a better experience with no greed. The reviews on the “English” side of Steam are mixed, but most are mad that it got switched from an MMO. Also, if you are on PC and use the Mod Beta version, you will not be able to use crossplay. So, stick to the main game, and keep in mind that you save doesn’t go over either when switching.
Wayfinder, as a late review, gets a 4.5 out of 5 paws. Why not give it a perfect score? There are some issues with minor glitches, and personally, this game deserved a four-player co-op instead of just three. But again, being that there are no microtransactions with a fully playable game that you play to earn instead of buy is a win in my book. Streams will be happening for Wayfinder, so please follow twitch and see it live. Check back for more previews, news, and reviews here. – Beast Out –
Verdict:
A company that listens to the player base? Definitely a Gem to check out, with good reviews like this perhaps the game will succeed for further game changes in the near future! 😁
It if fantastic when this happens and should happen often, especially when it is a dungeon crawler adventure. But as stated, even better when the company didn’t get rid of the game entirely. Some devs need a backbone against their publishers and investors.