Concord's Launch Flops Worse Than 2023's Gollum – What's Next

The launch of Concord, a new live-service shooter from PlayStation, has been met with disappointing concurrent player counts, far lower than expected and even worse than last year's notorious Gollum game. On its debut, Concord saw a peak of just 697 players, a stark contrast to competitors like Valve's Deadlock, which hit 89,000 players before its official release. Worse still, player numbers dropped over the weekend with Friday's count lower than Gollum’s launch figures, raising concerns over PlayStation's ability to deliver in the live-service realm. Critiques of the game label it as "shooter design by committee," potentially harming its word-of-mouth reputation, and with a lengthy eight-year development cycle, the stakes feel high for Sony. If this trend continues, PlayStation may need to reevaluate its live-service strategy, especially after previously delaying several titles and canceling others.

Concord's player counts continued to decline after launch, with figures falling from a peak of 697 players on launch day to even lower numbers over the subsequent weekend. This downward trend has raised concerns about the game's appeal and PlayStation's live-service strategy.

Concord is a live-service shooter that attempts to break into a saturated market filled with free-to-play games. It has been in development for eight years, a period marked by the rise of popular live-service titles like Overwatch and Apex Legends. Given the competitive landscape, Concord’s poor launch reception raises questions about its design decisions and overall player engagement. Sony's commitment to live-service games has been scrutinized, especially as they face ongoing shifts within the gaming community regarding the demand and success of premium models versus free-to-play experiences.