Concord Taken Offline By PlayStation After Just 2 Weeks

PlayStation has officially pulled the plug on, the publisher's latest attempt to crack the games-as-a-service model. After a dismal launch that saw less than 700 players on Steam jumping into the game on its day of release, the writing has been on the wall for a couple of weeks as many speculated that developer Firewalk Studios would be forced to pivot to a free-to-play strategy. Unfortunately, that idea didn't go too far as the much-maligned hero-shooter was seemingly doomed to fail right from the start.

PlayStation's latest exclusive, Concord, was launched on PlayStation 5 and PC on August 23, 2024, to a surprisingly low player count.

Per an official announcement on the PlayStation blog penned by Game Director Ryan Ellis, is being taken offline on September 6, just over two weeks after its launch on August 23. Ellis notes that whilethe game did manage to establish a small audience, the "."will be removed from all online marketplaces and refunds will automatically be provided to everyone who purchased the game regardless of their platform; those who purchased a physical copy will need to organize a refund through the retailer from which it was bought.

It's worth noting that while will be taken offline, it sounds as though Firewalk Studios may be open to returning to the game. Ellis writes that the team will "" players, so may return from the dead at some point. How Firewalk intends to breathe life back into the beleaguered game remains to be seen, especially when the deck was so heavily stacked against it.

Most critics agreed that was actually a relatively fun experience bolstered by slick gameplay and impressive visuals, but the promotional campaign and presentation instantly alienated players. Releasing a hero-shooter in 2024 is incredibly risky thanks to the market being somewhat dominated by heavy-hitters like and . Charging $40 for a multiplayer-only experience in a genre that's found huge success with the free-to-play model also dissuaded many players from