Summary
- Concord was delisted and pulled offline after an extremely unpopular two-week run.
- Despite being completely unavailable to the public, Steam player counts show that a few users are still playing Concord.
- These Concord players are most likely Firewalk developers, inciting speculation over whether the studio sees a path forward with the live-service hero shooter.
Even though it was pulled offline a few days ago, a handful of Steam users are still playing Concord somehow. The live-service hero shooter barely lasted two weeks on the market, as publisher PlayStation decided to delist Concord due to its shockingly low player numbers.
With reported sales figures of a meager 25,000 copies and less than 700 peak concurrent players on Steam, Concord's disastrous two-week run is regarded by many as the most unsuccessful and unpopular of any PlayStation first-party game ever. Concord was delisted on September 6 and refunds are currently going out to every buyer, which is unprecedented not only for PlayStation, but for the industry at large. Developer Firewalk Studios did remark in Concord's shutdown announcement that it would "explore options" to bring the PvP hero shooter back, but there remains a chance the entire game could be written off.
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A recent petition to bring Concord back has accumulated 2,000 signatures, but it remains to be seen whether the infamous live-service title will get a chance at redemption. While Concord remains in limbo, though, some have noticed that despite the game being delisted, refunded, and pulled offline for every single player, Steam data shows that a handful of people are still playing Concord, on PC at least. At the time of writing, Concord has six players in-game with a 24-hour peak of eight players on Steam.
Firewalk Devs are Supposedly Playing Concord on Steam
Several people are understandably baffled by these peculiar Concord player counts, as the game is entirely inaccessible to the public right now. However, it was pointed out that these players are most likely Firewalk developers, as they'd be the only group of people on the planet who will have access to Concord at the moment. Moreover, this could also suggest that Firewalk is fairly motivated to figure out a way to bring Concord back, rather than just binning the whole game and discussing plans to move past it. With Concord's Secret Level episode reportedly still airing this December, it'll be interesting to see if the game returns by then.
As of right now, the running theory is that Concord could return in a free-to-play format with microtransactions, ditching the previous $40 upfront pricing with no battle passes. This would place Concord's monetization strategy much more in line with its direct competitors, Overwatch 2 and Valorant. However, there's also the matter of the negative perception attached to Concord's originality, as many believe that it doesn't do enough to set itself apart from its rivals.
Concord
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 64 /100 Critics Rec: 23%
- Released
- August 23, 2024
- ESRB
- t
- Developer(s)
- Firewalk Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
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 CREW
From 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.
