Concord's launch was met with a disappointing silence, leading to the swift closure of its servers. Dive deeper into the story behind this short-lived game.
Firewalk Studios’ Freegunners Fail to Fly, Servers to go Offline Two Weeks After Launch
No Hype Leads to Hibernation
Firewalk Studios’ 5v5 hero shooter, Concord, is shutting down just two weeks after its launch. Game Director Ryan Ellis announced the decision on Tuesday, September 3rd, via the PlayStation Blog, citing the game’s inability to meet expectations.
"While many qualities of the experience resonated with players, we also recognize other aspects of the game and our launch didn’t land the way we’d intended," Ellis wrote. "Therefore, at this time, we have decided to take the game offline beginning September 6, 2024."
The statement also detailed automatic refunds for all players who purchased the game digitally on Steam, Epic Games Store, and the PlayStation Store. Those with physical copies were directed to follow their retailer’s return policy.
It’s evident that Firewalk and Sony had high hopes for Concord. The acquisition of Firewalk Studios by Sony was driven by confidence in the studio’s potential, bolstered by positive feedback from both Ellis and Firewalk’s studio head, Tony Hsu. The game was set to feature in an episode of the upcoming Prime Video anthology series, Secret Level. Additionally, Ellis outlined an ambitious post-launch roadmap, including a planned first-season launch in October and weekly cutscenes.
However, the game’s poor performance led to a significant shift in plans. They managed to release only three cutscenes—two from the game's beta and one shortly before the closure announcement. The future of the characters’ adventures remains uncertain.
What Doomed Concord?
Despite an eight-year development cycle, Concord struggled to generate significant player interest from the outset. The game peaked at just 697 concurrent players, and at the time of writing, only 45 players were online. These figures do not include PlayStation 5 users, but even so, the numbers pale in comparison to the beta peak of 2,388 players, falling short of expectations for a Sony-published triple-A title.
Several factors contributed to Concord’s failure. Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad noted that while the game boasted strong gameplay mechanics and was "content complete," it failed to differentiate itself from existing hero shooters. Ahmad highlighted the game's lack of innovation and uninspired character designs, stating, "It didn’t stand out and felt stuck in the OW1 era."
Additionally, its $40 price tag put it at a disadvantage compared to popular free-to-play competitors like Marvel Rivals, Apex Legends, and Valorant. Coupled with minimal marketing, as Ahmad remarked, "it’s no wonder no one purchased it."
Ryan Ellis mentioned that Firewalk Studios will "explore options, including those that will better reach" players, leaving open the possibility of a future return. The revival of the MOBA hero shooter Gigantic, which transitioned from a live-service to a buy-to-play model six years after its initial shutdown, serves as a reminder that discontinued titles can find new life.
While some suggest making Concord free-to-play, following Square Enix’s example with Foamstars, this change alone might not address the game’s core issues of bland character designs and sluggish gameplay. A complete overhaul, akin to the successful redesign of Final Fantasy XIV, may be necessary to breathe new life into the game.
Game8 rated Concord at 56 out of 100, lamenting that "it’s almost tragic to see eight years of work culminate in such a visually appealing, yet lifeless, game." For a more in-depth analysis, you can read our full review below!
