Summary
- Concord's development spanned 8 years, surprising the gaming industry due to this lengthy cycle because of Firewalk's young age.
- Sony's investment in Firewalk and Concord is evident, with top-notch visuals and a strong marketing push for the game's release.
- Despite heavy marketing efforts, Concord's launch numbers have been underwhelming, with a peak player count of just 697 on PC.
As Firewalk's Lead Character Designer, Jon Weisnewski, confirmed in a recent Tweet, Concord has been in development for around eight years. This news comes as a pretty big surprise to many in the gaming industry, not just because developer Firewalk was founded just six years ago, but also because that's an incredibly long development cycle for a multiplayer video game, even one that now falls under PlayStation's first-party umbrella.
In April 2021, Sony announced that it was entering an exclusive publishing partnership with Firewalk Studios, and two years later, the studio was officially acquired by Sony. Though the exact details are a little hazy, it seems likely that Sony has invested a great deal in Firewalk and Concord over the last few years. Concord is now officially out, and while it might not be leading the charge for PlayStation's live-service department as intended, its first-party budget does give it one or two edges over its competition.
It's important to note that Concord's budget has not been officially detailed by Sony or PlayStation, though leaks last June did allege that Sony has spent over $200 million on first-party titles like Horizon Forbidden West and The Last of Us Part 2.
Concord: Crew Bonus, Explained
Playing some characters before your main can help make them even more of a threat than they normally are.
Concord's First-Party Status Gives it a Few Advantages
Concord's Visuals Are Top-Of-The-Line
Probably the clearest indication of Concord's presumed higher budget, the hero shooter's visuals look spectacular across the board. Leaning heavily into its Guardians of the Galaxy influences, Concord is filled with brief moments of vibrant color, with its hyperspace loading screens popping suddenly with a rainbow of light, and certain special abilities emitting a dazzling array of sparks and flashes. Many of Concord's particle effects are also suitably vibrant, while still feeling grounded in the game's universe.
Though the designs themselves have been criticized for being too generic or derivative, Concord's playable Freegunners all boast some extremely detailed character models and some impressive motion capture. The animations in general are pretty great, with even the Freegunners' reload animation injecting a subtle but neat layer of charm that distinguishes them from one another.
It may not have the same fidelity as a game like Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, or the same heavily stylized pop as a game like Borderlands or Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, but Concord's visuals are a key strength. And when compared to its more cartoony competition, Concord's more grounded Sci-Fi art style does go a long way in making it stand out from the crowd.
Concord's Marketing Is Keeping It in The Public Eye
Another clear indication of Concord's status as a first-party PlayStation title is its rather extensive marketing campaign. Along with multiple pre-release trailers, Concord has been pushed to the front of social media platforms like TikTok, where ads for the game run frequently. With Concord's Open Beta being a bit of a disappointment when it came to active players, this heavy marketing push both before and after Concord's release makes a lot of sense.
But despite PlayStation's best efforts, Concord's launch-day numbers aren't looking too hot. According to SteamDB, Concord has an all-time peak player count of just 697 players, and at the time of writing, it's been three days since the game had its full launch. Though Concord's marketing has kept it in the conversation, it doesn't seem to have encouraged many players to jump aboard, at least on PC.
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.
