# The Rise and Decline of *Concord*: Insights from Sony’s Brief Team-Based Shooter
In the dynamic realm of video games, achievements can be as ephemeral as they are gratifying. Sony’s recent venture with *Concord*, a team-centric online shooter crafted by Firewalk Studios, starkly illustrates the hurdles that even prominent industry figures must navigate. Released on August 23, 2024, *Concord* was pulled from the market and is scheduled to go offline on September 6, merely two weeks post-launch. This abrupt closure has sparked curiosity within the gaming community: what went awry?
## An Optimistic Beginning with High Expectations
*Concord* marked the debut release from Firewalk Studios, a developer established in 2018 and acquired by Sony in 2023. The game underwent approximately eight years of development, a timeframe in which the multiplayer shooter landscape transformed considerably. When *Concord*’s development commenced, Blizzard’s *Overwatch* was a revolutionary title, paving the way for a surge of team-based shooters that would follow.
Sony unveiled *Concord* at its PlayStation Showcase in May 2023, igniting considerable excitement among genre enthusiasts. The game was marketed as a novel addition to the saturated arena of live-service shooters, promising ongoing support, customizable team configurations, and significant content releases. Firewalk Studios’ Game Director Ryan Ellis expressed his enthusiasm for the game’s potential, asserting that the launch was merely “the start” of a journey that would see the game expand and evolve alongside its player community.
## The Reality: A Tepid Response
Despite the initial enthusiasm, *Concord* found it hard to gain momentum from the outset. GameDiscoverCo analyst Simon Carless estimated that the game sold around 25,000 units across PlayStation 5 and PC—a disheartening result for a title with the backing of a major publisher like Sony. Circana analyst Mat Piscatella emphasized the game’s dismal performance, noting that only 0.2 percent of all active PS5 users were engaged with *Concord* on the Monday following its launch, placing it as the 147th most-played game of the day.
The game’s Steam performance was similarly disappointing. SteamDB data indicated that *Concord* peaked at significantly fewer than 700 players shortly after its release. On PlayStation, the widely used trophy tracking site PSNProfiles recorded just over 1,300 players owning the game—a stark comparison to more successful recent titles, such as *Star Wars Outlaws* and *Black Myth: Wukong*.
The critical reception of *Concord* was equally lackluster. The game was endorsed by only 24 percent of reviewers tracked by OpenCritic and currently holds an average score of 65 on Metacritic. Numerous critics highlighted that while the game possessed some redeeming features, it ultimately failed to set itself apart in a crowded landscape.
## What Went Awry?
The swift downturn of *Concord* can be attributed to multiple factors, primarily its inability to distinguish itself within a saturated genre. When *Concord* started development, the team-based shooter category was relatively new, with *Overwatch* leading the pack. However, by the time *Concord* launched, the market was inundated with comparable titles, all competing for the attention of a limited player base.
In this fiercely competitive backdrop, *Concord* found it challenging to present anything groundbreaking or innovative. Although the game’s mechanics were solid, they were too reminiscent of existing shooters to draw in a considerable player base. The absence of a distinct selling proposition hindered *Concord*’s ability to establish a foothold, culminating in a rapid drop in player engagement.
Additionally, the marketing and promotional strategies may have also contributed to its downfall. While Sony and Firewalk Studios did create some initial excitement, the game’s launch lacked the fanfare typically associated with major releases. This insufficient visibility likely played a role in its disappointing sales and low player retention.
## A Cautionary Tale
The fate of *Concord* echoes other notable failures in the gaming domain, such as Amazon’s *Crucible*. Similar to *Concord*, *Crucible* was a team-based shooter that struggled to capture an audience amid stiff competition. Despite being backed by a major corporation, *Crucible* was removed from Steam and ultimately shut down just six months after its release.
The rapid discontinuation of *Concord* serves as a valuable lesson for developers and publishers alike. In today’s gaming ecosystem, even well-financed projects with lengthy developmental histories can falter if they don’t provide something genuinely unique or engaging. The success of a game is no longer assured by the heft of its publisher or the duration of its development; it must connect with players on a deeper level.
## What Lies Ahead for *Concord*?
Despite the
