MindsEye studio execs depart Build a Rocket Boy, one week before game’s debut

The Chief Legal Officer and Chief Financial Officer at MindsEye developer Build a Rocket Boy have left the company, a week before the game’s release.

Writing on LinkedIn, former CLO Riley Graebner said he was “proud” of what the team has accomplished during his time there, stating that during his tenure the company had “doubled” in size, to “over 450 employees”. Graebner did not give a reason for this departure.

In addition, Build a Rocket Boy’s CFO Paul Bland has also left the company after two years.

Over on the MindsEye Discord, many have expressed concern that two key members of the Build a Rocket Boy team are leaving so close to the game’s release. As a reminder, MindsEye is launching on 10th June, across PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.

“It could be a sign of very troubling internal affairs, or [they] don’t want to deal with potential legal issues if MindsEye comes out broken,” one member has speculated.

“Trying to keep an open mind, but that’s sus indeed..,” another wrote. “People don’t bail right before they think they’re releasing a hit usually. If you were the CFO at Rockstar a week out from GTA6 launch, would you resign?”

Eurogamer has contacted Build a Rocket Boy for further comment on Graebner and Bland’s departures.

Word of Graebner and Bland’s departures from Build a Rocket Boy come days after the studio’s co-CEO Mark Gerhard suggested the negative reaction to MindsEye so far had been paid for in a “concerted effort” against the studio ahead of its release.

In an exchange on the MindsEye Discord server, Gerhard was asked if he believes “all the people who reacted negatively were financed by someone”, to which he replied: “100 percent.”