News Articles
Friday8th Nov 2024
News Sony Comments on Concord Disaster, Says Game Should Have Been Tested Earlier
User testing and internal evaluation needed to be sooner
Sony has claimed it should have been performing internal tests of Concord earlier than it was to spot the mistakes that led to its disastrous launch. Speaking during a Q&A session part of its latest Q2 financial earnings call, Sony president Hiroki Totoki said the firm is still going...
Tuesday29th Oct 2024
News Concord Cost Sony Over $200 Million, And Didn't Make a Single Cent
A price to pay
There’s been much discussion about how much money Sony wasted on gigaflop Concord, and now we have a ballpark estimate. It had previously been reported that the company had spent $400 million on the game, although this number always seemed a little high. Now Kotaku is citing two sources as saying the initial development deal for the...
News PS5, PC Flop Concord Never Returning, Studio Closed Down
Crash landing
In a devastating PS Studios update, bigwig Hermen Hulst has confirmed that following a period of consultation, PS5 and PC gigaflop Concord will never be returning and developer Firewalk Studios has been closed down. According to Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, around 172 people will lose their jobs, although Sony does say it’s trying...
Friday11th Oct 2024
News Concord Devs Tinker with PC Files, Spurring Free-to-Play Speculation
Failure to launch
We haven't heard much from the Concord front in recent days, likely because it functionally no longer exists. Still, there is plenty of interest amongst the PlayStation faithful as to what developer Firewalk's ultimate fate will be, and the always-watching SteamDB has detected some small movement. Now, we don't speak PC and thus...
Friday20th Sep 2024
Rumour Concord Cost $400 Million, Sony Believed It Was the 'Future of PlayStation'
Allegedly Sony's most expensive first-party game ever
We promise we’re not trying to rub it in, but Concord is such a historic flop that some of these stories simply can’t be overlooked. Speaking on the latest episode of Sacred Symbols, veteran ex-IGN reporter Colin Moriarty said he’d spoken to a developer on the first-person shooter, and...
News Concord Dev Could Close After Director of PS5, PC Disaster Steps Down
Staff refreshing resumes as they anticipate job cuts
The silence following Sony's removal of Concord from sale could never last, and it appears there has been some movement at the embattled Firewalk Studios. According to multiple Kotaku sources, the developers feel like they are stuck in limbo, and last week, director Ryan Ellis told staff he would...
Friday13th Sep 2024
News You Can't Buy Concord on PS5, PC Anymore, But You Can Buy the Official Merch
Every cloud
As you will no doubt have heard, Sony's multiplayer shooter Concord has been removed from sale indefinitely, with no confirmation of when, or if, it'll return. The sci-fi FPS failed to find a sizeable audience, with sales numbers estimated to be shockingly low, resulting in a shutdown just days after its initial release. A disastrous...
Tuesday10th Sep 2024
News Freelance Artist Attempts to Redesign PS5, PC Flop Concord's Cast
Better or worse?
Concord, the ill-fated first-person shooter from Firewalk, failed for a multitude of reasons. We’ve documented many of these, but one thing PlayStation fans have latched onto are the character designs. As we pointed out in our review, they’re not all bad – but some of them do struggle to standout in a saturated market. Compare...
Friday6th Sep 2024
News PS5, PC Disaster Concord Is Now Officially Offline Indefinitely
Gone and likely forgotten
And just like that, two weeks after it launched, Concord is officially offline indefinitely. A 1.3GB patch has been deployed confirming that Sony has pulled the plug on the first-person shooter, and you can no longer connect. The release – arguably the biggest flop in PlayStation first-party history – sold an estimated...
News Concord Will Remain in Prime Video's Secret Level Anthology Series
Might as well get your money's worth
Given Concord's shocking reversal in fortune in recent days, you might wonder what this all means for its expanded universe of transmedia, which was seemingly so central to Sony's strategy here. Well, the show must go on, as they say, and a source close to the production has indeed confirmed that Concord will...
Thursday5th Sep 2024
News Concord PS5, PC Scalpers Attempt to Cash In on 'Rare Collector's Item'
Mercenary life
With time running out and Concord servers set to switch off tomorrow, September 6th, scalpers seem to be attempting to make some quick money off of PlayStation's soon-to-be-unplayable multiplayer shooter. Spotted by IGN, while physical copies of Concord were quickly swept off retail shelves and the digital version is no longer...
Wednesday4th Sep 2024
News Players Take the Easy Way Out in Pursuit of Concord's Coveted Platinum PS5 Trophy
We're here if you need to talk
Fresh off the news of the game's unprecedented flop and subsequent removal from sale, Concord's remaining player base appears to be taking the easy way out; in pursuit of the game's Platinum Trophy and easy XP gains, Concord players are now committing suicide en masse, resulting in darkly humorous scenes. On
Tuesday3rd Sep 2024
News Sony Flop Concord Axed Two Weeks After PS5, PC Release
Dead practically on arrival
Setting what has to be a new record for a game of its size and budget, Concord is officially being taken offline just two weeks after its launch on PS5 and PC. This is a frankly unprecedented move, but one that doesn't come as a massive shock, which speaks volumes about the game's utterly disastrous levels of appeal...
Monday2nd Sep 2024
News Concord Devs Maintain Radio Silence, Which Isn't Helping Matters
No news is good news, right?
Concord has only been out for just over a week, but it feels like aeons, especially for those brave few who are actually playing and enjoying Sony's latest foray into the competitive multiplayer space. Amidst the headlines decrying shrinking player numbers and abysmal sales figures, players have certainly taken not
Sunday1st Sep 2024
News How Long Does It Take to Find a Match in Concord on PS5, PC?
A little while
How long does it take to find a match in Concord right now? The problem Sony’s new first-person shooter is facing is that it’s an online-only experience, designed to be played in games of up to ten players. This is all well and good when a title has a huge community, but with Steam figures totalling in the hundreds and speculation...
Saturday31st Aug 2024
News Concord PS5, PC Sales Estimates Are Somehow Even Worse Than We Thought
An unbelievable 25,000 copies
It doesn't take a genius to realise that Concord has bombed. Sony's PS5 and PC hero shooter has, by all accounts, seriously struggled to attract players. At this point, it's common knowledge that the title almost immediately crashed and burned on Steam, where its frankly dismal user numbers are publicly available. It...
Thursday29th Aug 2024
News Players Complain of Lengthy PS5 Matchmaking Times As Concord Numbers Dwindle
Vicious cycle
In another worrying sign of Concord's ongoing viability, complaints of lengthy matchmaking times have begun to emerge as the already small player base seemingly contracts. After the game's launch weekend, one PS5 player reported waiting up to eight minutes to find a match outside of peak hours, which is obviously not ideal for a...
Monday26th Aug 2024
News Things Are Getting Worse for Floundering PS5, PC FPS Concord
Update: Steam audience gradually evaporating
Update: The weekend has not brought any signs of improvement to Concord’s performance on PC, where it’s now officially floundering on Steam. While the title peaked at a pitiful 697 concurrent players upon launch, it’s not passed that number since, and its daily highs have been getting lower...
Thursday22nd Aug 2024
News PS5, PC Hero Shooter Concord Was in Development for 8 Years
A long flight
It’s a sign of the times: live service shooter Concord took an enormous eight years to develop. The tidbit was confirmed on X (or Twitter) by lead character designer Jon Weisnewski. He wrote: “Today Firewalk Studios launched Concord. The game has been in development for around eight years and I’ve been there for almost five of...
Wednesday21st Aug 2024
News Concord Probably Best Played on PC, According to Official Features Trailer
Uncapped framerate, 4K, Nvidia DLSS 3.7, oh my
With Concord dropping simultaneously on Friday on PS5 and PC, Sony is now detailing the PC version, which comes with all kinds of additional bells and whistles. You'll need a rig capable of taking advantage of those extras, obviously, but it's hard not to see the list of PC-exclusive extras and feel a...
Thursday15th Aug 2024
News Concord Fires Off Another Salvo of PS5, PC Character Trailers
Home stretch
We've got another round of Concord character trailers to luxuriate in, and this time, it's Roka, Duchess, and Kips' turn to shine. Previously, we got a look at Jabali, Teo, and It-Z, and then it was Lennox, Haymar, 1-0FF, and Star Child. With a total of 16 Freegunners promised at launch (on PS5 and PC on 23rd August), we've just passed...
Tuesday13th Aug 2024
News Concord Pre-Load Available Now on PS5, Post-Launch Roadmap Revealed
Buckle up
Things have gone a little quiet, but Sony is on the verge of launching its next big online multiplayer game. Concord, its 5v5 first-person shooter, launches very soon; the "proper" launch date is 23rd August, while those who've pre-ordered the digital deluxe edition will gain access starting on 20th August. Whichever version you've plumped...
Wednesday7th Aug 2024
News Concord's Animated Freegunner Adventures Continue as PS5, PC Launch Draws Closer
If you animate it, they will come
Like clockwork, the next exciting instalment of the Concord - Freegunner Adventures, the bi-monthly animated accompaniment to Concord (which isn't out until 23rd August), has arrived, whether you were ready or not. This time, Freegunners Vale, Bazz, and Emari take on a perilous water valve delivery. It's cool to...
Thursday1st Aug 2024
News Another Wave of Concord PS5, PC Character Trailers Has Arrived
Thought you ought to know
Another round of character trailers for Concord has been released, taking a closer look at four more of the game's roster of 16 Freegunners ahead of launch in August. We previously got to know and see a bit of gameplay from Jabali, Teo, and It-Z, and now it's the turn of Lennox, Haymar, 1-0FF, and Star Child. You can check...
Friday26th Jul 2024
News Concord's Seemingly Unlimited Promo Budget Now Includes Animated Shorts
Why not?
Regardless of whether it’s a hit or not, you can’t accuse Sony of not trying to get eyeballs in front of PS5 and PC hero shooter Concord. A new video uploaded to the official PlayStation channel includes an animated short, intended to give players a deeper insight into Freegunners Teo, Jabali, and It-Z. You can watch it above...
Wednesday24th Jul 2024
News Training Modes, No Battle Pass, More Details Confirmed for Concord in Post-Beta Q&A
What Larks
Developer Firewalk Studios has spent the last couple of weekends getting Concord into the hands of players on PS5 and PC, gathering feedback and info on its imminent multiplayer shooter. Now that things have wrapped up, the studio has posted a thread on social media, going over a few common questions that basically outline what to expect...
Sunday21st Jul 2024
News Concord's Free Open Beta Is Performing Abysmally on PC
Unflight of the Concord
Concord is a good game – but sometimes being good just isn’t enough anymore. After attracting some pretty pathetic Steam player numbers during its closed beta – which, admittedly, required participants to pre-order the game – Firewalk Studios’ free open beta is not doing much better. According to SteamDB data, the...
Thursday18th Jul 2024
News There's Already Concern Over Concord's Player Count as Open Beta Begins
Shoot to kill
Concord's open beta begins today (that's the 18th July) on PS5 and PC, welcoming anyone and everyone into the hero-shooter fray. But this celebratory moment is in danger of being overshadowed by talk of the game's player count. Indeed, the previous early access beta — which ran from the 12th July to the 14th July — reportedly...
Tuesday16th Jul 2024
News Take in a Concord Double Feature with These Scene-Setting Cinematic Vignettes
"Yep, it's a map"
One of the ways Concord hopes to carve out a place for itself in the increasingly crowded service space is with weekly vignettes, telling an ongoing narrative that will begin at launch on 23rd August. To set the scene, we've got a double feature depicting the beginning of the Northstar crew's story. They're both animated well and...
Monday15th Jul 2024
News Concord's Early Beta Extended an Extra Day on PS5, PC
Keep it rolling
Concord is currently in the middle of the first of two beta test periods, and it's just been extended a little. The early beta, reserved for those who've pre-ordered and those with a PS Plus subscription, was meant to conclude on 14th July, but has been extended to include the 15th as well. The news comes via the game's official...
