Ill fated from the get go
Concord crashed and burned. As stated in my article on August 28th, the game did not get the expected sales and was not the release that Firewalk Studios nor Sony Interactive Entertainment had hoped for. Therefore barely 2 weeks after the release of the game, the news came that it will be taken offline as of September 6th.
Reason
In a very short press release, Ryan Ellis Game Director at Firewalk Studios thanked the fans and express gratitude to those that joined in the fun, He also said that they listened to the fans. According to Ryan, the game had many qualities and resonated with the players, they also recognized that other aspects of the game and the initial launch didn’t land the way they intended and that is why they are taking the game offline. They will explore options that will better reach their player base.
Refund
Player will be refunded, for those who bought the game from the PlayStation Store, PlayStation Direct a refund will be issued back to the original payment method. For Players who purchased the game on Steam, Steam will send a confirmation once the refund has been processed. The same will be for the Epic Store, where they will contact the buyer to confirm that the refund was processed.
Respect
Over the years I often said that we, the community of gamers, have the power to make changes and we need to voice our opinions in a constructive manner. It is too easy to say that a game ”sucks” and complain. But your words can be a force to be reckon with, when you add, why you felt that way, what was not liked and what was missing. Game designers are human and they make decision that cannot please everyone.
Reverence
I have the utmost respect for Ryan Ellis and all the folks at Firewalk Studios for making that decision, There is not a single doubt in my mind that this was not an easy decision to make. They did try to launch a game in a niche that is pretty much saturated at the moment. Thank you for listening to the players and I hope that the option that you take will also be based on what the community said.