After just twelve days, Sony took offline its big shooter hope with Concord for PS5 and Steam, thus sealing the final nail in the coffin of one of the biggest flops in video game history. Now the fate of the responsible studio has been determined.
What about the studio? In an official letter from Hermen Hulst, the CEO of PlayStation Studios Business Group, employees were informed that the Firewalk Studios as well as Neon Koi (a mobile game studio) will be closed (via sonyinteractive.com).
The letter states: “We have spent a lot of time in recent months reviewing all our options. After careful consideration, we have concluded that the best course of action is to permanently discontinue the game and close the studio. I want to thank all the employees of Firewalk for their craftsmanship, creative spirit, and dedication.”
The exact number of employees affected by the layoffs is currently unclear.
One of the gameplay trailers for Concord:
Historical Flop
What do I need to know about Concord? The multiplayer shooter was supposed to become one of Sony’s new pillars to expand its currently struggling games-as-a-service foundation. For that, Firewalk Studios was even acquired in April 2023. But things turned out quite differently than hoped:
- Concord flopped brutally at launch and, for example, only registered a peak of 697 concurrent players on Steam.
- Sony acted quickly. Only 12 days after the launch, the shooter was taken offline. The few buyers are to receive their money back.
- According to various reports, Sony is said to have invested a triple-digit million amount into the project. An insider even speaks of 400 million US dollars (excluding the acquisition sum for the studio).
In the meantime, the game director of Concord, Ryan Ellis, has stepped down from his position to switch to a supportive role. Thus, a familiar face bids farewell to long-time players, as Ellis was the creative head of the best DLC for Destiny, and now he is the face of Sony’s flop on PS5 and Steam.
