Why was n’t it free - to - play ? Should Sony have offered it for free through PS Plus ? Did a PlayStation login necessity wipe out it ? Would it have somehow sold millions more written matter if its type did n’t have pronoun ?
For the past workweek , gambling watercoolers have been abuzz with questions like this — ranging from the thoughtful to the nonsensical — regarding Sony ’s latest release , Concord . The resilient - service torpedo , which launch simultaneously on both PS5 and PC , has had an uncharacteristically bouldered launch for a full-grown - budget Sony game . While PS5 stats are n’t available , it ’s struggling to discover histrion on Steam . At its peak on launching day , Concordonly had 697 simultaneous playersaccording to SteamDB . At the time of penning , around 5 p.m. ET on a Wednesday , it only has 171 players . By comparison , Ubisoft ’s heavily criticizedSkull and Boneshas over 1,600 currently encounter on Steam .
Even if it ’s miraculously doing much easily on PS5 , it ’s good to say thatConcordis struggle to find oneself its consultation . Everybody seems to have a unlike reason as to why , but perhaps it ’s not as much of a mystifier as players think it is . MaybeConcordisn’t taking off because players just are n’t concerned in it .
What happened?
Concord‘s launch data point may fathom scandalous in a vacuum , but it take a shit perfect signified for anyone who has been give attention to the hired gun ’s selling history . The labor is the debut from Firewalk Studios , a new first - party Sony studio apartment . While it has several warhorse multiplayer developers on its squad , admit those who worked on the Destiny series , it ’s not the kind of studio that has name realization or a lead record to pronounce . With no history to go on , player would only be able to judge the game at face value . Its reveal would be crucial .
That key moment came earlier this May , when Sony rolled out the crimson carpet forConcordas part of aState of Play flow . alas , it started on the wrong foot . The stream made the dumbfound choice to part by designate a foresightful cinematic cutscene for a game that sport no unmarried - player mode . Many witness seemed unimpressed , point to the fact that it looked and sounded like a riff on Marvel’sGuardians of the Galaxy . While Sony would show gameplay after that long introduction , it leave a sour first notion .
One month afterward , a diminished undulation of previews hit the internet — and the impression were mixed . While some write - ups skewed positive , the one that dumbfound people tattle the mostcame from IGN , arguably the gambling existence ’s run tastemaker . Writer Stella Chung , an source with a strong expertness in torpedo , painted a picture of a middling multiplayer secret plan in desperate penury of pinch . There ’s power in a negative stamp from a publication as with child as IGN ; the site similarly published miserable impressions ofSuicide Squad : Kill the Justice Leagueahead of its launch , which contribute to its public percept .
A public genus Beta keep up in July , which moderate to some similarly mixed impressions from press and players alike . Aside from concerns about balance , the consensus seemed to be thatConcordjust did n’t seem to have many original ideas . Fun games are a dime bag a XII in 2024 , and Sony ’s sales pitch struggled to show off what made its offering so special .
Those whirlwind few months culminated in its quiet launching on August 23 . A undulation of middling reviews trickle in and the player count failed to take off on PC . It was effectively dead in the water before it could get start out .
What’s to blame?
That timeline of events should n’t leave much room for mix-up . Sony was work on with a new IP that did n’t have pre - built ballyhoo around it , and each month guide up to its release brought another dark marketing meter . The public perception was thatConcordwas out of way . It search likeOverwatchand sound likeGuardians of the Galaxy , two cultural touchstones that hit the peak of their popularity in the late 2010s . It mat like Sony was chase outdated trends , and spending a immense chunk of change to do so . Many player just were n’t concerned in what it was selling .
How does something so out of touch with what ’s hot happen ? You could pin that on the unsustainability of ballooning development timelines . According to a lead character designer Jon Weisnewski , Concordwas in development for eight years . That would mean it began its life the same twelvemonth thatOverwatchlaunched , which explains why it has so many similarities from the exterior . Video game tendency are a moving prey . A hot new thing seems to happen every three or four years that wholly upends what ’s popular in multiplayer . Concordwas of late to the hero shooter party by years .
Even then , though , any reasoning like this ultimately points back to the much simpler explanation of player simply not being interested . Marvel Rivalslooks to be even more of a directOverwatchriff thanConcord , which draw more of its ideas fromDestiny . Its enjoyed a wave of momentum since its reveal thanks to its connection to a popular IP , confirming impression from press and content creators , and a strong closed beta display . The writing style is n’t inherently out of fashion .
Some have reason thatConcordis substantiation that players do n’t want resilient service swot down their throat . While that ’s likely dead on target for some , the continued succeeder of game likeFortniteflies in the cheek of that logic . participant will still show up for a neat alive service of process biz in droves if they like about it or if it has good word of mouth . Concorddidn’t have the luxury of either .
Other attempt to explainConcord‘s battle run away into alike system of logic gob . A common explanation pins the nonstarter onConcord‘s $ 40 price tag . The logical argument is that it would have worked better as a free - to - play biz . While that likely would have assist its player pedestal , a premium Leontyne Price rag is n’t a last sentence . Sony ’s mega - popularHelldivers 2launched at the same $ 40 cost point and player did n’t seem to think twice about picking it up .
The most downright absurd conspiracy theory is thatConcordfailed because it ’s “ woke ” due to cause a various cast of characters . spoilt religion arguments like that have been hard used this year to explain the failure of games likeSuicide police squad : Kill the Justice League , but they are n’t based in realness . Overwatchfound plenty of success while maintaining a diverse cast of characters . Baldur ’s Gate 3was 2023 ’s boastful hitand gives player the option to enter queer relationship . Marvel ’s Spider - Man 2sold 11 million copy in spite of a subset of on-line commentators plain about it centering representation in its tarradiddle . There ’s no reproducible data that shows that player are unwilling to play a game that a very flashy group believes will “ go wear out ” based on inclusive design — even if occasionalflops likeRedfallopen the door for confirmation preconception .
The truth is that video plot success and failures sometimes have very bare explanations . Palworldhad buzz for geezerhood before its early memory access launching due to a “ WTF ! ” trailer that show its Pokémon - comparable creatures in sweatshops . It rode that interest to success . Black Myth : Wukonghad several gamey - profile placements in vitrine like Summer Game Fest , where it invite positive buzz . It also had an tremendous marketing budget behind it and the good will of a very excited Formosan market who were eager to see the highly popularJourney to the Westadapted into China ’s first AAA video game . You could have even seenBalatro‘s surprise successcoming if you had been comply its well - have Steam demo and bombination from influential depicted object creators before its launch .
failure are sometimes just as easy to predict . Suicide Squad : belt down the Justice Leaguegot off to a spoilt start after its first gameplay trailer was revealed to negative reception . A delay to 2024 mounted anxieties around the project , while the virality ofpoor previews from sites like IGNsolidified them . Skull and Bonessuffered from a long , disruptive growing history that had become ill-famed . hearsay that Ubisoft wanted to cancel the secret plan amid misfortunate focus tests , combined with pitiful reviews , led it to a logical conclusion .
Very few could have reasonably predicted justhowtoughConcord‘s launch would go , but it ’s been absolved since May that it was n’t leaving a scar . decision like pricing for certain factored into its trouble , but they do n’t get to the core of the exit . If players were interested , it could have whelm any number of hurdle just as unnumerable others have .
What’s next?
The early information would suggest thatConcordis already doomed , even if it ’s performing better on PS5 . Such lower player count on PC jeopardize to create long matchmaking queues that push players away . It risks falling into a death spiral as its trouble imperil to intensify into bigger single . Conventional Wisdom of Solomon would enjoin you that it ’s bound to suffer the same fate as unrecorded servicing founder likeBabylon ’s declination .
There ’s still hope for Sony , though . WhileConcordhas endure months of bad wardrobe , there ’s some convinced word of mouth forming in the aloofness . If social media is any meter reading , there seems to be an audience that ’s get through with the paladin shooter . Even inDigital Trends ’ own review , I note that the core gameplay ofConcordis promising . Its problems lie more in its deficiency of original ideas , an unproven weekly cutscene premiss , and a thin launch package .
We know that Firewalk Studios is attached to buildingConcordout further . The studio hasthree season plannedthat it intends to stick to , turn over it a bit of runway to rebuild momentum through strong updates . Games likeSplitgateandNo Man ’s Skyhave come back from bad launches by staying the course and doubling down on what work . Concordcould do the same , though it ’s toilsome to imagine such a high - budget production getting much more tractableness from Sony .
There will be plenty of lessons to learn fromConcordno matter which direction it ultimately goes in . What ’s important is not to get misdirected by noisy conversations as players front to form its narrative to fit their own . An explanation is lying in unornamented sight .
Concordis useable now on PS5 and PC .
