Concord could be a fun shooter, but it needs a secret ingredient

This August, PlayStation will kick off its emerging dive into live service with Concord. The new hero shooter from Firewalk Studios looks to capture the fun of Overwatch while delivering a slow drip approach to narrative that could keep dedicated players logging in every week. With its stylish art and memorable character designs, it has just about everything a good hero shooter could need to succeed.

So … what’s missing?

I asked myself that as I dove into Concord‘s first beta over the past weekend. I found a perfectly competent shooter that seems to be checking all the boxes; it just wasn’t quite locking into place just yet. I can easily point to a few fixable problems, like movement speed and matchmaking issues, but Concord’s biggest problem might be a little broader: I’m struggling to find a key feature that makes it stand out from the competition. Every hero needs their ultimate ability, after all.

Special abilities

If you’ve played a hero shooter in the past seven years, you know what to expect here. Concord is a 5v5 multiplayer shooter where each player picks a distinct character (dubbed Freegunners) with their own bespoke weapons and abilities. From the jump, it’s clear that Firewalk Studios has really put the right effort forth to nail that aspect. Each character has their own unmistakable design and a totally unique play style. Star Child is a hulking tank that can dash into battle and blast enemies with a shotgun, while Roka can float in the air and blast rocket shots down. Yes, a fair amount of the heroes here have direct Overwatch counterparts, but playful designs and some inventive abilities help differentiate them. I’ve already found my main character in Lennox, a sort of reptilian cowboy who can pepper enemies with pistol shots and heal himself.

I appreciate that Concord is committing to making those characters more than just avatars. Firewalk Studios is set to build them out through regular cinematics that show off their snarky personalities and