Sony has faced significant setbacks in its push into the live-service gaming market.
Washington State filing indicates that Sony's closure of Concord studio Firewalk will impact 174 workers. Closure is effective November 1.
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) October 30, 2024
The closure of Firewalk Studios and the failure of its game Concord highlight the challenges PlayStation faces in this competitive arena. Firewalk Studios, acquired by Sony just last year, was shut down this week after the disappointing launch of Concord, a PvP hero shooter for PS5 and PC.
The game, which spent eight years in development, failed to capture players’ interest. SteamDB data shows player counts on PC never exceeded 1,000, and sales were dismal on both PS5 and Steam. Several factors led to Concord’s failure.
Ugh. More bad game industry news, this time from Sony. Firewalk is shutting down. ☹️
(@jasonschreier broke the story first) https://t.co/GKxilLwbfc
— Ryan McCaffrey (@DMC_Ryan) October 29, 2024
It missed the peak of the hero shooter trend in 2016 with games like Overwatch. Its $40 price made it uncompetitive against free-to-play rivals. The game also felt incomplete at launch, with clunky mechanics and unclear systems, drawing widespread criticism.
Sony's closure today of two studios — Concord developer Firewalk Studios and mobile game maker Neon Koi — will result in 210 people losing their jobs, a spokesperson tells Bloomberg News. Firewalk had 172 employees, while Neon Koi had 38. https://t.co/ksiVFpfWLs
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) October 29, 2024
Concord’s flop has broader implications for PlayStation.
Sony’s challenge in live-service gaming
Sony’s abrupt response – pulling the game from stores and disbanding Firewalk Studios weeks after release – reflects uncertainty about its live-service strategy.
Sony’s success with acclaimed single-player games like God of War and Spider-Man contrasts with its live-service struggles. The industry is increasingly favoring online games such as Fortnite and Call of Duty, which dominate gamers’ attention and spending. Sony’s 2022 acquisition of Bungie, developer of Destiny 2, aimed to bolster its live-service lineup.
However, the company has scaled back its goal of running ten live-service games by 2025 to six amid ongoing challenges, including layoffs at Bungie and project cancellations. To move forward, Sony must reassess its approach. The failure of Concord shows a need for new tactics.
Sony should reconsider relying solely on the PlayStation brand to sell games or making hasty decisions like quickly removing games from stores. Assuring developers their studios won’t be closed if their first game struggles could also help recruit and retain talent. Sony must learn from this experience to refine its live-service capabilities and ensure future growth in this competitive space.
A strategic reevaluation is crucial for PlayStation to find its footing in the evolving gaming landscape.
April Isaacs is a news contributor for DevX.com She is long-term, self-proclaimed nerd. She loves all things tech and computers and still has her first Dreamcast system. It is lovingly named Joni, after Joni Mitchell.
