Concord director reportedly steps down

Oh here we go, I have to credit Kotaku of all things for some news. It is like crediting a politician for being honest and not taking backroom deals. In the continuing saga of things I could have predicted with my eyes closed, according to Kotaku, the creative director of Concord, Ryan Ellis, has stepped down while the studio waits on its direction from PlayStation.

The studio based in Bellevue, Washington was founded in 2018 with founding members including studio director Tony Hsu, game director Ryan Ellis, and team director Shawn Leach. From there the studio started work on Concord, as well as assumably other ideas, Concord being the one that we can credit as surviving long enough to see enough production that we’ve heard of it. The studio worked on Concord initially with its then-parent company ProbablyMonsters, which has gone on to co-found other studios like Hidden Grove with Bungie’s Chris Opdahl. In 2023 Firewalk was acquired by Sony ahead of the 2024 release of Concord.

Of course, we know the more recent history: Released in late August, the Hero Shooter saw less than 200 players on PC two weeks post-launch, and as a result, was shut down on the 6th of September. In fact, it was Ryan Ellis’ words that we got when it was announced that Concord would be going offline and removed from sale. At the time, Ellis noted that the studio would “explore options” and “determine the best path ahead” in an attempt to suggest the studio will rework the title in the coming months.

According to the report by Kotaku, three sources have told the site that the studio is “pessimistic” that Concord will in fact make a return. Reportedly some were “asked to explore pitches for something completely different” for the studio (with around 150+ employees) to work on. Kotaku also notes that there is further speculation, similar to what I’ve previously suggested will be the course of action, that there will be layoffs in the coming future. It is never great to predict such a thing, but if we’re honest, that’s the state of the modern industry. The drop of a hat gets lots of people laid off.

In Kotaku‘s report, one former employee said, “Ryan deeply believed in that project and bringing players together through the joy in it.” Going on to note, as well as the resulting stress from putting his everything into it, “Regardless of there being things that could have been done differently throughout development…he’s a good human, and full of heart.” Another source told Kotaku that Ellis was “too emotional to speak at points” in a post-launch studio meeting.

Ellis has been in the industry for the better part of 20 years, starting as a tester for one of 2004’s greatest games, Spider-Man 2. In the more hands-on aspect, Ellis has done work on the Oddworld series, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, as well as some artwork on 2014’s Destiny. Most recently (before Concord), Ellis was the creative director for Destiny 2, with further design credits for expansions such as “Shadowkeep” in 2019 and “The Witch Queen” in 2022. It isn’t nice to talk about someone reportedly stepping away from something they’ve poured themselves into, but I think he’ll benefit from a fresh start.

To return to the report on Kotaku and maybe give a bit of my thoughts, there is speculation that Concord will return in 2025 as a PS Plus exclusive or free-to-play. While one of the barriers for Concord was the nearly $40 price tag, something else I think is the problematic sword of Damocles hanging over the studio’s head. The genre of Hero Shooters, the genre of free-to-play shooters similar to Concord, and the general landscape Concord wants to inhabit is full.

Will we see the game again? Yes, we know that we’ll hear from it during the anthology series Secret Level, but as an active game is a different question. I want to say it is safe to assume Sony/PlayStation will at least attempt a second launch in a different, more appetizing state. The question I’d have is how well that second launch might be received when/if it does come. We’ve seen resurrections of games previously lampooned, with No Man’s Sky and Cyberpunk 2077 being the best examples, so I guess it is 50-50 depending on PlayStation’s desire to give the team the time and resources required.