Sony shuts down Harmony developer Firewalk Studios

On August 23, Sony launched the team-based hero shooter Concord and simply 10 days later it shut it down. The sport struggled to draw gamers, as demand and curiosity in hero shooters dwindled. On Steam, the sport by no means hit greater than 700 gamers, based on SteamDB.

The builders shut down the sport on September sixth saying it “didn’t land as we would supposed.” Refunds have been issued to gamers who bought the $40 recreation on PC and PlayStation 5.

In an inner electronic mail launched at present, it was introduced that Sony has determined to completely shutter Firewalk Studios, the sport’s developer, successfully killing Harmony eternally.

Harmony is formally no extra

Sadly, the writing was on the wall

Sony/Pocket-Lint

The internal email Sony posted was from Hermen Hulst, CEO of PlayStation Interactive. The letter introduced the closure of Firewalk Studios, the developer of Harmony, and Neon Koi, one in every of Sony’s cell recreation studios.

“We’ve spent appreciable time these previous few months exploring all our choices,” says Hulst within the internal email. “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, artistic spirit and dedication.”

Neon Koi was a cell recreation growth studio supposedly engaged on an AAA cell motion recreation. Hulst says the cell recreation area stays a precedence, however it’s refocusing its strategy to be extra in keeping with “PlayStation Studios’ pedigree” to succeed in extra gamers globally.

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Over 200 individuals will lose their jobs because of the closures

That is one more blow for the battered video video games business

Sony

Hulst says Sony will work to assist discover substitute work at its different studios for these impacted by each studio’s closures, however, sadly, it looks as if some builders at each studios will lose their jobs. Based on Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier, 210 individuals shall be shedding their jobs, with over 170 coming from Firewalk Studios.

The online game business has suffered large layoffs this yr already. In Might, Microsoft announced the closure of three of its studios, and attributed the shutdowns to “reprioritization of titles and assets.” The business continues to be on a slippery slope.

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