Sony pulls Concord offline, issues refunds after disappointing sales
Sony is putting Concord out of its misery. The online hero shooter launched on PlayStation 5 and PC last month but failed to spark interest from players, with Steam player numbers painting a bleak picture. After poor sales and a declining player base, PlayStation parent company announced it would be taking Concord offline on September 6. All sales of the game will be halted, and players who purchased the game on PS5 or PC will receive a full refund, Sony confirmed.
Concord goes offline
In a PlayStation blog after On Tuesday, Concord developer Firewalk Studios said the game would go offline on September 6. The studio did not provide an update on the game’s future, but said it would “explore options.”
“Concord fans — we’ve been listening closely to your feedback since Concord launched on PlayStation 5 and PC and want to thank everyone who has joined the journey aboard the Northstar. Your support and the passionate community that has grown around the game has meant the world to us,” said Ryan Ellis, Game Director at Firewalk Studios.
“While many qualities of the experience resonated with players, we also recognize that other aspects of the game and our initial launch did not resonate as we intended. As a result, we have decided to take the game offline as of September 6, 2024, and explore options, including options that will better reach our players,” he added.
Firewalk confirmed that the game would be discontinued on both PS5 and PC, and that players who have already purchased the game will receive a full refund. “If you purchased the game on PlayStation 5 from the PlayStation Store or PlayStation Direct, a refund will be issued to your original payment method,” Firewalk said.
Purchases made through Steam and the Epic Games Store will be refunded in the coming days. The stores will send customers a confirmation once the refund has been processed. However, players will no longer be able to access the game after the refund has been issued.
Concord launched on PS5 and PC on August 23 after an open beta period where player interest in the game seemed minimal. The first-person shooter highest number of concurrent players of all time on Steam sits at a meager 697 — lower than the peak player count of The Lord of the Rings: Gollum, one of the lowest-rated games of 2023. At the time of writing, just 45 users are currently playing Concord on Steam.
Concord is an online hero shooter with no battle pass system and a price tag of $40. With several free-to-play alternatives like Overwatch 2 available, Concord had a tough job convincing players to buy the game. An IGN reportBased on industry analysts, Concord estimates it has sold about 10,000 copies on Steam and about 15,000 on the PlayStation Store.
