Concord Was Well Made; Devs Deserve Another Chance, Says Ex-GTA Director

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Rockstar Veteran Not Happy With Firewalk Closure!

Story Highlight
  • Former Rockstar veteran Obbe Vermeij has deemed Concord competent.
  • He states that Firewalk could have attempted a similar game for its next project.
  • The former GTA developer is not fond of publishers buying studios only to shut them down after one failure.

Concord failed almost instantly and became one of gaming’s biggest disappointments. Two months later, PlayStation shut down the studio, dispelling all hopes for a revival in the future.

With no hope for Concord and Firewalk, other developers have chimed in on the industry’s current state. Obbe Vermeij, one of the former GTA directors, has also shared his thoughts, stating that Firewalk’s work was competent at the very least.

Why it matters: The studio’s closure led to hundreds of developers losing their jobs and millions of dollars going to waste for PlayStation.

GTA Dev Comments on Firewalk Closure
Obbe Vermeij Discusses The Trend of Acquisitions And Studio Closures via Twitter

Taking to Twitter, the former GTA developer expressed a general distaste for the trend of publishers buying up studios only to shut them down later. Various instances of this trend have been seen in recent years, with the likes of Embracer Group closing developers after failing to profit from major releases.

On the subject of Concord, he pointed out that the game was far from salvageable, but it was well-made. Obbe Vermeij argues that it would have been better to give Firewalk another chance at something similar instead of closing the studio altogether.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to give the team another game to work on?

-Obbe Vermeij

He believes a similar game based on an existing IP could have worked for Firewalk. Similarly, the team could have tried a new PvP IP based on a different style.

Concord
Concord Cost More Than $200 Million

Obbe Vermeij raises an interesting point, but PlayStation seems to disagree. Going by Hermen Hulst’s words, a similar option was considered but ultimately disregarded in favor of abandoning Firewalk altogether.

What are your thoughts on the former Rockstar developer’s opinion? Do you think the team behind Concord deserved another chance? Let’s discuss this in the comments and the official Tech4Gamers Forums.

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