Sony has shut down Firewalk Studio, the developer of Concord, and Neon Koi – WGB

Sony has introduced that it’s shutting down Firewalk Studio, the developer of the ill-fated Concord, barely over a yr and a half after buying the staff for an undisclosed quantity.

Firewalk wasn’t the one studio to be shuttered although, as Sony additionally confirmed that the closure of Neon Koi. Beforehand often called Savage Studio, Neon Koi was purchased in 2022 and has not launched a single recreation in that point.

“We persistently consider our video games portfolio and standing of our initiatives to make sure we’re assembly close to and long-term enterprise priorities.” read the official statement from Hermen Hulst. “As a part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen SIE’s Studio Enterprise, now we have needed to make a troublesome choice relating to 2 of our studios – Neon Koi and Firewalk Studios.”

Addressing Neon Koi particularly, Sony’s assertion had this to say: “Whereas cell stays a precedence development space for the Studio Enterprise, we’re within the very early stage of our cell efforts.  To realize success on this space we have to consider titles which might be in-line with PlayStation Studios’ pedigree and have the potential to succeed in extra gamers globally. “

As for Firewalk Studio, it’s closure maybe isn’t a shock given the monumental failure of Harmony. The hero-shooter was reported to have been in growth for 8 years and apparently cost some $400 million to make throughout Sony and Firewalk’s earlier personal ProbablyMonsters. Kotaku is now reporting that the figure is closer to $200 million, though that quantity is probably going far greater because it doesn’t embrace a number of elements.

At launch Harmony struggled to attract any gamers, failing to reach even 1000 players on Steam. These numbers dropped quickly. After which IGN reported that the game had sold a miserable 25,000 copies in its first week on sale.

Lower than two weeks after launching, Concord was shut down and Sony issued refunds to everyone who bought it. Nonetheless, on the time Sony and Firewalk stated they might think about methods of bringing Harmony again, with many assuming this meant that it could be was a free-to-play title.

That isn’t to be although, as Sony has confirmed Harmony is being “sunsetted” and won’t be returning.

“Relating to Firewalk, as introduced in early September  (An Important Update on Concord), sure elements of Harmony have been distinctive, however others didn’t land with sufficient gamers, and in consequence we took the sport offline.  We now have spent appreciable time these previous few months exploring all our choices.”

“After a lot thought, now we have decided the perfect path ahead is to completely sundown the sport and shut the studio.   I need to thank all of Firewalk for his or her craftsmanship, inventive spirit and dedication.”

No matter Harmony’s failure and the way you’re feeling concerning the recreation, it all the time sucks to see individuals dropping their jobs and it’s a disgrace that we’ll by no means get to see if Firewalk Studio had the rest within the tank. Simply attending to do a single challenge earlier than being shuttered is harsh, however on this case comprehensible: if the experiences are correct, Harmony was in growth for much too lengthy and value manner an excessive amount of, chasing developments that had peaked lengthy earlier than.

As for Neon Koi, it’s a disgrace they by no means bought to launch even one challenge.