Yikes! Sony decided to pull the plug on their hero shooter just two weeks after it launched and will issue refunds to eveybody who purchased the game.
You don’t see it everyday. Concord, the supposed huge new online multiplayer shooter from Sony has seen catastrophically low numbers, both in sales and in players count, eversince it released on PS5 and PC. The developer, Firewalk Studios is likely having a very bad time and low morale after such a disastrous launch. After all, the game has taken 8 years and a whopping $200 mln to make. It’s possible the studio won’t survive.
So what happened? Concord was supposed to be the new huge shooter with millions of fans, yet barely anybody touched the darn thing. I think there are a few reasons behind it.
First of all, the game should be a free to play title. There’s already a ton of games like it, which are free. The game is not bad at all, but who will pay 60 bucks for a game, when they can play any other title like Apex Legends or Valorant, without spending a dime.
Second reason, as I mentioned, is the competition. The market for colorful hero and looter shooters has been quite filled these past few years. There was no reason to bring yet another title to the roster. Especially for the full price.
Lastly, while the game is pretty fun, it brings nothing new to the table. We already saw it all. The characters looked like Guardians of the Galaxy rip offs, the gameplay was fine, everything was exactly that, just fine. Its not enough to push this game to the masses and create a passionate community around it.
But I’ll be honest, the numbers surprised me. Many sources stated, that the game didn’t even sold 30,000 copies on Steam. The all-time active players peak did not crossed one thousand players, making the game unplayable from day one. So now Sony decied to pull the game out of online stores and issue refunds, and then likely try to erease Concord from players memory. If you bought the game on Steam, Epic Games Store or Playstation Store, you can easily get a refund through the shops via original payment method. For the players who purchased a physical copy, Sony suggest getting a refund from the seller.
I feel really bad for the developers at Firewalk Studios, who, without a doubt, put their sould into this game for years. Unfortunately, it came out at a wrong time and was simply to expensive. Ryan Ellis, the game director has put out a statement through Playstation Blog, explaining the situation to the gamers. I doubt Sony will salvage Concord now. We can just wish their next attempt at getting into the multiplayer world will be a better one.
