Summary
It seems defunct hero shooterConcordmay be to blame for two recent Sony cancelations, including aGod of Wargame that was in development.Concordwas a hero shooter by Firewalk Studios that will go down as one of the biggest flops in industry history. While the hero shooter could deliver some fun multiplayer matches, it completely failed to find an audience. Despite ambitious live-service plans for the game,Concordwas shut down mere weeks after launch.
Concord’s demise was followed by theclosure of Firewalk Studios. While it’s believed Sony will continue pursuing live-service games in the wake ofConcord’s cancelation, it was recently reported that two of the company’s other live-service titles were canceled. Bend Studio, known forDays GoneandSyphon Filter, was reportedly working on a live-service military shooter that will no longer see the light of day, whileDemon’s Soulsremake studio Bluepoint Games apparently had aGod of Warlive-service project in the works.
Sony has canceled both projects, and now there may be additional insight as to why it made this decision. Jeff Grubb, speaking on Jeff Grubb’s Game Mess, said that these decisions were made because ofConcord. “Sony is shellshocked fromConcord, and now they’re going around to every studio, and they are reassessing every single project,” Grubb said. Grubb added that these projects were the main games that the developers were working on at the time that they were canceled.
Concord to Blame for Recent Live Service Cancelations
A live-serviceGod of Wargame would have likely been met with a great deal of criticism from the community, though a live-service military shooter may have fared better. Regardless, it seems the extreme failure experienced byConcordhas seen Sony rethink its plans for live-service games. That doesn’t mean that the company won’t haveanynew live-service projects -it does ownDestinystudio Bungieafter all - but it does seem to indicate that we will see fewer of them moving forward.
The live-serviceGod of Wargame andBend Studio’s new IPare not the only casualties of Sony’s live-service ventures.The Last of Us Onlinewas canceled in 2023, and reports have indicated that Insomniac was working on a live-serviceSpider-Mangame that has also been canned. Time will tell what kind of impact this will have on Sony’s pipeline of first-party exclusive games, but it will definitely be interesting to see what the company has in store for the PS5 in the months ahead.
Concord
WHERE TO PLAY
Assemble your crew of Freegunner space outlaws and team up online with friends for thrilling 5v5 PVP modes across the galaxy in Concord.Concord is a new team-based first-person shooter for PS5® and PC*. Handpick your personal roster of Freegunners from the crew of the Northstar – a group of outlaws and adventurers working as guns-for-hire.ASSEMBLE YOUR CREWFrom powerful mystics to skilled gunslingers and helpful healers, each Freegunner brings their own unique skills, personality, and abilities that cater to a wide-range of playstyles.Create your own custom squads of Freegunners with Crew Builder to bring an arsenal of different role types to the match or focus on your favourite characters to master their gameplay and unlock unique modifiers, cosmetics, background lore, and more – you decide when to play your characters and how you impact the match.PLAY. PROGRESS. PERSONALIZE.Earn and unlock a wide range of character customization items and learn more about the characters, worlds, and factions in the Concord Galaxy with the Galactic Guide.You’ll also be able to progress toward and unlock Freegunner Variants—versions of each of the 16 Freegunners with added Combat Trait modifiers to their base abilities. As you learn and master the characters, Combat Traits empower you to tailor each character to your playstyle.
