Just as quickly as the game died, it seems the Concord-related fallout has already begun for Firewalk Studios, as not only has their studio head stepped down, but its remaining employees fear that their future is just as bleak.
Word of the Sony subsidiary studio’s supposed turmoil was first brought to light courtesy of Kotaku‘s Ethan Gach, who learned of the information from a variety of insider sources.
According to said sources, the bell began toll for Firewalk Studios when Concord director Ryan Ellis – who per Gach “was the main shot caller” on the failed hero shooter – told his fellow devs that he would be stepping down from his leadership role in favor of a more support-oriented one.
Notably, players may remember that in his last official communication as the game’s director, Ellis assured the public that although the Concord had been essentially scrapped in its current state, he and his team at Firewalk Studios were still working to both “explore options [for the game], including those that will better reach our players” and “determine the best path ahead”.
However, despite his wording’s suggestion that Concord may come back later in some way, shape, or form, Gach’s insiders say that not only is this looking completely unlikely, but so is their continued employment.
RELATED: ‘Concord’ Appears Dead On Arrival As Hero Shooter Releases To Less Than 700 Concurrent PC Players
“They are pessimistic Concord will return, and some have been asked to explore pitches for something completely different that Firewalk, which is currently around 150-170 employees, might work on next,” reported Gach. “Speculation among some staff has also included whether the studio could be used as co-development on one of Sony’s myriad other first-party projects currently in production. Others, however, feel like mass layoffs will be the most likely result of Concord’s failure, including the possible shutdown of the entire studio.”
As Firewalk Studios’ time appears to be coming to a close, now feels like a good time to remember that Sony not only purchased the studio solely on their belief that Concord would be a smash hit, but that they chose to do so rather than support their now-shuttered JAPAN Studio, whose team of veteran developers produced such noted hits as Tokyo Jungle, Bloodborne, and the Gravity Rush duo-logy.
In further proving that Sony bet on the wrong, uninspired horse, while Concord has gone down in history as one of the biggest disasters in the history of video games, the last remnants of JAPAN Studio, as currently organized under the banner of Team Asobi, recently released Astro Bot to near-universal applause.
At current, Sony has not responded to Gach’s requests for comments.