It’s been two weeks since Sony announced it would be taking the unprecedented step of releasing Concord , and almost as long since the ill-fated sci-fi hero shooter was officially taken offline. In the time since then, Kotaku understands, developers at Firewalk Studios have been left in limbo over their future as they await Sony’s decision on what happens next for Concord and the team as a whole.

Whatever happens, game director Ryan Ellis won’t be at the helm. Ellis was previously at Bungie, where he was creative director on Destiny 2, but left in 2017 to lead development on what would eventually become Concord. He told Firewalk staff last week that he was stepping down from his role as game director and instead taking on a supporting role, according to three sources familiar with the change.

Sony did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ellis was the keynote speaker at Concord, which failed to draw a crowd despite praise for its underlying shooter gameplay. Analyst Simon Carless estimated to IGN that the $40, PVP-only game had only sold around 25,000 copies, dismal numbers considering not only its budget but also the PlayStation first-party brand it represented. Sony acquired Firewalk in 2023 for an undisclosed sum after the game had been in production for years, and promoted Concord at both that year’s PlayStation showcase in May and in 2024.

“Ryan was a huge believer in that project and bringing players together through the joy that came with it,” said one former developer, who said he felt Ellis had put too much of himself into the game, which led to a lot of stress. “Regardless of whether there were things that could have been done differently during development… he’s a good person and a big heart.”

Sources told Kotaku that Ellis was too emotional to speak at times during a post-launch studio-wide meeting after it became clear the game was a flop. In a September 3 PlayStation Blog post announcing Concord’s removal from store shelves, Ellis wrote, “aspects of the game and our initial launch did not pan out as we intended.” He added that the team would “explore options, including options that would better reach our players” and work to “determine the best path forward.”

Some outsiders have speculated that Concord would relaunch as a PS Plus exclusive or free-to-play game later this year or early 2025 to get more players to try it out. The game’s existing content roadmap has been expanded to three seasons, complete with the promise of expensive weekly cutscenes that tell the story of Concord’s world and characters.

But for many inside the studio, it’s still unclear what comes next, three sources told Kotaku. They’re pessimistic that Concord will return, and some have been asked to scout pitches for something completely different that Firewalk, which currently has around 150-170 employees, might work on next. Speculation among some staffers has also included whether the studio could be used as a co-development tool for one of Sony’s numerous other first-party projects currently in production.

Others, however, believe mass layoffs will be the most likely outcome of Concord’s failure, including the potential closure of the entire studio, which sources tell Kotaku is one of the more expensive studios in PlayStation’s portfolio on a per-head basis. Some developers are updating their resumes and portfolios, a few have already left the studio as a preemptive measure, and others are waiting to see what a potential severance package will look like before deciding what to do next.

Sony made major cuts earlier this year, including the cancellation of multiple games and the closure of PlayStation London Studio. But with rival Microsoft recently laying off another 650 people from its Xbox gaming division and the end of another fiscal quarter in sight, more cuts could be on the way.

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