Firewalk Studios, the developer behind the failed first-person shooter Concord, has officially been shut down. Concord was released on August 23, 2024, to a deadly cocktail of mixed reviews and stiff competition. It was shut down just two weeks later, citing a failure to build a player base.

According to a blog post by Sony Interactive Entertainment, documenting an internal email sent by Studio Business Group CEO Hermen Hulst, Firewalk Studios closed its doors today for good. The correspondence goes on to describe Concord's failure, and thank the development team at Firewalk for its efforts, all while promising lots of exciting news from SIE in the near future. It also claims that some of the studios' employees will be absorbed into the wider Sony ecosystem.

Sony Shuts Down Both Concord And Firewalk Studios After Failed Launch

Why Concord Shut Down

The complete closure of Firewalk is a little sudden, but Concord's failure was much easier to see coming. Although some aspects of the game did work well, its flaws apparently outweighed its merits. Concord was widely criticized for failing to offer anything new in an already oversaturated market: that of hero-based first-person shooters. Many critics cited its uninspiring character and level design as its greatest shortcomings, preventing it from standing out in a market already dominated by games like Overwatch 2 and Valorant.

For one reason or another, though, Concord couldn't sustain a player base, with a peak of less than 700 players worldwide on Steam. That was the stated cause for its September 6 shutdown and delisting. Shortly thereafter, its director, Ryan Ellis, stepped down from his position.

Players who purchased Concord were refunded.

That said, Concord did have a small fan base, as evidenced by a hope of a Concord revival, especially considering Firewalk's continued existence and announcement, upon Concord's delisting, that it would "continue to explore options." However, all dreams of Concord coming back have been dashed by this latest update, which appears to confirm that the game is well and truly dead.

Firewalk Studios Is Not The Only One Closing Down

Neon Koi Also Affected

Firewalk isn't the only studio that Sony closed today, as mobile game studio Neon Koi also appears to have been shut down. With offices in Finland and , the studio formerly known as Savage Game Studios was acquired by Sony in 2022. It had yet to deliver a completed game. Bloomberg estimates that the two studio closures may lead to a loss of up to 210 jobs.

This is also only the latest round of closures and layoffs to hit Sony-owned studios (not to mention the gaming industry in general). This past February saw the closure of PlayStation's London Studio, mainly responsible for developing games for Sony peripherals like the PSVR. This follows the high-profile closure of Japan Studio, co-developer of PlayStation exclusives such as Bloodborne, Death Stranding, Ghost of Tsushima, and the Demon's Souls remake, in 2021. Microsoft also closed four of its studios this past May.

Screen Rant's Take: Concord Deserved Better

Concord Never Had A Chance

Concord may not have been revolutionary at launch, but it deserved more of a chance than what it got. Some games are massive, instant hits, attratcing significant player bases immediately after launch, but that's an unfair standard to hold every single game to. That goes double for live service games, which may not garner sustainable player bases until post-launch updates go into effect. To shut it down just two weeks after launch didn't give it near enough room to breathe, and to follow up by closing the studio means it'll never have a second chance.

At the same time, though, much could've been improved about Concord's launch. First and foremost, it came out far too late. This speaks to a recent industry trend: game budgets and development times appear to be ballooning out of control, sometimes causing ideas that are innovative and new when they're first proposed to become old hat by launch. Concord's $40 price tag (plus microtransactions) also might have been too steep, especially when well-established hero shooters like Overwatch 2 and Valorant are free to play.

But unfortunately, these observations are far too late to save Concord. With Firewalk shut down, there's no hope of a revival, and it'll forever remain a dark spot in video game history. For now, all we can do is hope Sony's next foray into live service games is a little more calculated, and that Concord's developers land on their feet.

Sources: Sony Interactive Entertainment, Bloomberg