In a significant setback for Sony's live service gaming ambitions, the company's recent multiplayer shooter Concord has become one of PlayStation's most costly failures, leading to important lessons about game development and market validation.
The Scale of the Failure
Concord's development represented a massive investment, with initial development deals reaching approximately $200 million. This figure didn't even cover the entire development cost or include the acquisition of IP rights and Firewalk Studios. The game's performance was so poor that Sony made the unprecedented decision to shut it down just two weeks after launch, with estimates suggesting only around 25,000 copies sold.
Sony's Response and Learning Points
Sony's executive Hiroki Totoki acknowledged the company's missteps in a recent investor Q&A. He emphasized the need for more comprehensive validation processes and earlier user testing phases. The company identified that their siloed organizational structure may have hindered smooth development and sales coordination, suggesting a need for better cross-departmental collaboration.
The Future of Sony's Live Service Strategy
Despite this setback, Sony isn't abandoning its live service ambitions. While acknowledging their strength in single-player games with proven IP, the company maintains its commitment to pursuing live service games, albeit with a more calculated approach to risk management. This strategy is particularly interesting given the contrasting success of Helldivers 2, another Sony-published title launched in the same timeframe.
The Creative Legacy
The Concord project will leave a small legacy through an upcoming animated episode in Amazon's Prime Video anthology series Secret Level. Tim Miller, the series creator, praised the development team's dedication and expressed surprise at the game's failure, highlighting the potential of the game's world and characters that will now only be glimpsed through this animation.
Industry Implications
This case study serves as a crucial lesson for the gaming industry about the risks and challenges of developing live service games. It underscores the importance of early market validation, comprehensive user testing, and the need for flexible development structures that can adapt to market feedback before full launch.