Highlights:
* Concord was Sony’s first IP developed under the Games as a Service (GaaS) model.
* The team-based shooting game recorded a peak player count of below 700 following its launch.
* Sony has issued full refunds to the buyers and removed the game from all stores.
Concord is the latest AAA live-service title after Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, whose developers had to issue refunds a few weeks after the game’s release. The first-person hero shooter by Firewalk Studios witnessed a rapidly declining player base and sales, which eventually forced Sony, the publisher, to take it offline. Concord has been removed from Steam, EPIC Games, and the PlayStation Store effective from September 6.
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Ryan Ellis, the Game Director, mentioned in a blog post that certain aspects of the game didn’t have the desired appeal and that the studio would “explore options that will better reach players.” It is not ‘game over’ for the shooter title for the time being. However, the initial nixing of Concord is considered one of Sony’s biggest losses.
A Game 8 Years In Development Taken Offline Within 2 Weeks Of Launch
Concord was announced in May 2023 after reportedly being eight years in development. On their website, Firewalk Studios mentioned that the game aimed to deliver “a unique universe of vibrant worlds” with a “rich cast of colorful characters.” The studio boasted a staff who have worked for Bungie and Blizzard, and their collaboration with Sony to bring a high-budget team-based shooter piqued the interest of gamers worldwide.
Firewalk Studios wanted to create an expansive sci-fi universe with characters that had interesting backstories. They may have even released animations similar to Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, given their focus on cinematic trailers and cutscenes in the main story. Director of IP and Creative Lead Kim Kreines stated in an interview that they wanted to create a sci-fi title because the genre offers numerous possibilities both creatively and story-wise.
Fast-forward to July 18, 2024, when the open beta for Concord was launched and the low player numbers became breaking news. The peak player count was 2363. A big reason for the low count was the marketing. Unlike the new shooter title Spectre Divide, which was promoted by veteran esports players and streamers, Sony mostly relied on the existing fanbase to spread the word. The player count continued to dwindle, with Concord losing 20% of its PlayStation playerbase in the second week.
Following Concord’s launch on August 23, SteamDB recorded a peak concurrent player count of just 697. On September 3, a full week after its launch, the player count was 132 and it kept decreasing. There were times when the daily player count fell below 100.
According to reports, it cost $200 million to develop Concord. With only around 25,000 copies sold at $40 each, the total revenue amounts to $1 million. This indicates a devastating loss of more than 99% for the developers.
What Went Wrong For Concord?
At a time when developers are busy trying to reinvigorate the genre with more elements, Concord didn’t bring anything new to the industry. It was a generic hero-based shooter. The developers had invested more time in developing the character backgrounds and cinematic cutscenes instead of providing a new kind of gameplay. For instance, Spectre Divide allows two characters to be controlled at once, while Valve’s upcoming Deadlock is a MOBA shooter, a genre that is gradually becoming more popular.
Concord’s USP was the live-service label and the character designs, which were heavily focused on diversity, inclusion, and equity. The character selection menu even had pronouns. However, many fans complained that the characters seemed too basic. The cosmetics weren’t appealing either.
When a pay-to-play game dives into the shooter genre, it must be ready to compete with free-to-play titles like Fortnite. It must offer something better than the established shooters, especially in customizations, but Concord failed to impress.
Due to Concord’s ‘basicness’, its high price of $40 was not justified. While the gameplay was smooth, and the animations were polished, the game lacked the ‘it’ factor—a unique characteristic of the gameplay that could set it apart. Concord also struggled because of the oversaturated live-service market. It relied on the players to return each day and grind for hours to complete missions or pour money into unlocking new content. They might have been more engaged if the content had been more appealing.
Concord faced challenges due to its pricing, the intense competition in the live-service market, and its inability to offer something new to the target audience. The developers have promised to improve the shooter game but only time will tell how that would pan out.
