I’m not a multiplayer guy, but Concord made a decent first impression

I’ll be honest with you: I haven’t had much interest in developer Firewalk Studios’ Concord since its reveal last year.

For one, live services generally aren’t my thing to begin with, especially considering the oversaturated and samey state of that market. And for another, Concord‘s full unveiling during May’s PlayStation State of Play made it look like a rather generic mix of Overwatch/Destiny 2 PvP and a knock-off version of James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy. The fact that Firewalk was founded by former Destiny developers only had me further worried that Concord would be a similar bloated and grind-heavy experience.

But after getting to play a few hours of Concord and speak with Firewalk at Sony Interactive Entertainment’s HQ in San Mateo, California, I’ve come away a lot more positive than I was. Now that I have a better idea of how Firewalk’s approach to crafting an original multiplayer IP is more inviting than a lot of other live services out there, I’m actually now genuinely looking forward to it, albeit with a few key reservations.

An approachable multiplayer experience

My biggest takeaway from Concord is that it’s pretty straightforward: a familiar 5v5 shooter setup housed within a much looser framework. What I mean by that is where the likes of Overwatch and Destiny focus on class-based characters, Concord‘s colourful cast of 16 ‘Freegunners’ doesn’t necessarily fit into such clearly defined roles.

“We [didn’t] really rely on the classic ‘tank, healer, DPS’ archetypes, so we pushed into something that was a little bit less restrictive, less prescriptive, and we started talking about playstyles — more ways to encourage players to be more creative,” said Claude Jerome, lead gameplay designer, during a group presentation. “So we call these ‘Freegunner Roles’ — instead of telling you how to play, we suggest what kind of approach to combat might work for this character.”

For example, Teo is an elite soldier whose mid-range, thermal scope-equipped assault rifle, backup sidearm and frag and smoke grenades are meant to cater to the everyday FPS player. The field medic Daw, by contrast, is focused on both healing and deploying ‘Safety Dome’ barriers in between firing rounds from his burst rifle. As for me? I gravitated towards Lennox, a lizard-like adventurer who can switch between a heavy handgun and rapid-firing revolver for some slick gunslinging that actually recharges a self-healing ability, creating a satisfying loop of “kill-heal-repeat.” While these specific characters fit into more standard offensive vs. defensive archetypes, I appreciate that Concord doesn’t have a strict “you need ‘x’ number of types per match” sort of structure with them. Other than a restriction that only one person can be a certain Freegunner per team, you’re free to just choose whoever and dive right in.

Meanwhile, some of the other characters reveal a more intriguingly creative side of Concord. Take DaVeers, a non-binary chemist: they can paint the ground with fluids that can be ignited to damage enemies and create chokepoints, which gloriously feels like a deadly riff on Splatoon‘s signature paint mechanic. Jabali, meanwhile, is sort of a jack-of-all-trades in that he can dish out damage with a seeker rifle to gather pulse energy that he has to decide on the fly to use either to heal allies or increase damage output. But perhaps the most unique Freegunner was 1-Off, a sentient cleaning robot who can create air barriers to block projectiles or even suck them up with a vacuum and then, when his pack is full, throw his garbage bag to cause a shockwave-inducing explosion.

In the demo, we got to try out 10 of the 16 Freegunners that will be available at launch, and I’m already impressed with their versatility. I love that I can fall back on Lennox since I’m generally more of a guns-blazing FPS player, while craftier folks can pick up someone like DaVeers or 1-Off. My only criticism of the gameplay design of some of these characters is that many rely on pretty standard ‘pistol-rifle-shotgun’ weapon types. I wish there were a few more quirky and unorthodox characters like the aforementioned DaVeers and 1-Off or even Haymar, a brooding Mystic who can shoot explosive crossbow bolts, hurl fireballs and glide. Seeing such a supernatural kit does make my boy Lennox look a bit plain in comparison. On the whole, though, this seems like a pretty diverse lineup so far, even with six more characters waiting in the wings. I also actually like that the roster isn’t massive to start, as it means you should be able to jump in and learn each one without feeling overwhelmed. (Overwatch 2, with its 40-plus characters, might very well be “deeper,” but that’s also daunting for a newcomer like me.)

On the whole, there’s also just a tight fluidity to the feel of the gunplay and traversal, which is especially highlighted in the luminous and vertical Star Chamber (one of three maps we got to sample). Gliding up to a higher walkway with Haymar to engulf a lower platform in flames felt especially satisfying. Characters also have uniquely rewarding passive abilities that trigger during certain circumstances, like Lennox automatically reloading between cooldown-restricted dodges. This meant I was always cognizant of being evasive more sparingly, which added to that “one more in the chamber” feel and came in clutch during the frenetic Capture the Flag-esque ‘Cargo Run’ mode.

Jerome said Firewalk was inspired by several genres, particularly fighting games, in its overall approach to Concord‘s character design.

“When I get into a 1v1 in a fighting game, I truly have to consider my opponent — everything they have. And I think that’s just the magic of those games; you’re learning that and the person who’s playing that can bring their own expression into that,” he said of the fighting genre’s influence on Concord. “So it’s very freestyling, it’s very combo-oriented, very interesting, different matches each time.”

This approachability was especially important to Kim Kreines, Firewalk’s director of IP.

“I am a very casual FPS player, and I can enjoy matches [in Concord] as much as Freddy [Rangel, technical producer], who is killer,” she said during a Q&A. “For me, this actually hits that spot really well. There are modes that I love more than other modes — respawn modes are my favourite. The thing I really like about the character kits and the way they’re built out — and this is very personal — but as a casual player, I find that I can be effective without having to be in the thick of things.”

To that point, she praises Concord‘s “persistent deployables” — items like Daw’s healing pads — that remain on the map between rounds and require players to think about both their placement and destruction.

“Deployables add layers to that — all of the persistent things that carry match to match. And I found a lot of success for myself playing sort of the background character that can come in when needed, and feel like I contributed in a way that I haven’t always felt before.”

“We talked about this concept of ‘brains vs. aims’ quite a bit, because we want our game to be balanced in the sense that you can bring both to the table, and aiming skills should never be the only thing that determines the outcome of the fight,” adds Jerome. “Because we’ve seen that fail in some games where it becomes such a high skill gap that it’s really hard to approach. And so we’ve always wanted to make sure that your aim skill is a factor in the overall set of factors that contribute to outcome success or failure.”

Added depth — if you want it

But while Firewalk is placing a welcome emphasis on characters who are easy to pick up and play, it’s also introducing a few systems to bring complexity to the mix.

Although characters don’t necessarily have classes in combat, those “Freegunner Roles” that Jerome mentioned actually play into the ‘Crew Builder.’ With it, you can create all kinds of teams with the various Freegunners to switch between as you play. Besides helping you prepare for different matches, Concord gives each character in a crew a bonus, depending on the configuration.

For instance, a Tactician will provide the crew with increased reload speed, while a Warden will throw in improved weapon range, with each unique perk stacking. Jerome said these six different character roles, which each have their own corresponding bonus, will add a sort of “MOBA” feel where your crew gets stronger throughout the match.

“You can optimize that crew for different kinds of modes or team compositions or synergies or playstyles, and it ends up feeling like this deckbuilding experience where in between matches, you’re tinkering or theory crafting or trying to up your game in this very strategic kind of way,” he said. “We think there’s a lot of magic here — it’s become something people talk about and socialize around.”

Each Freegunner also has different Variants that Jerome said are basically “ultimate versions” of them with modifiers on their weapons and abilities. “They play in these different ways where they’re usually small, but impactful tweaks to the way you approach combat with these characters.” This includes more grenades for Teo, a wider healing radius for Jabali or, most welcome to me, a faster reload for Haymar’s slow crossbow.

On the flip side, he said Variants will be balanced with various “trade-offs,” on top of the game more broadly preventing crews from being filled fully with one character so you’re not “screwed” if someone else picks them. Still, it’s a clever way to encourage people to experiment with different characters and their respective Variants. It almost feels like a risk-reward element, as more casual players like me who want to main one or two characters (Lennox and Haymar, in my case) can do that and just focus on building them out through Variants, while hardcore players can challenge themselves by using a wider variety of characters, which requires more dexterity but could yield more benefits.

“So you’re thinking about how you’re going to narrow in on your playstyle or reinforce or change things up. It gives you a way to adapt without having to switch characters, so you have this rich space of small choices to adapt mid-match, or big choices like switching characters,” said Jerome. “But if you’re not comfortable with all the different characters yet and you want to stay in your lane, it gives you a nice little wiggle room. And we found that that becomes really valuable as you master each character.”

A brand-new universe that feels too familiar

You might have noticed that I haven’t spoken about the story yet, and for good reason — there isn’t much there to write home about, at least so far.

The gist of Concord‘s narrative is that the ragtag crew of the Northstar wants to steal the Galactic Guide, a map of the stars once controlled by the government, to be able to truly fly free. It’s a basic premise, to be sure, but one that Firewalk has made the rather lofty promise to continually expand with new story vignettes every week.

Now, I’ll confess that this initially concerned me; it hardly seems sustainable, not to mention that it sounds like players could get left behind if they don’t consistently play. However, Firewalk reassured us that it doesn’t want this material to feel like homework. Part of that simply boils down to these vignettes being two-minute cinematics that will be made available on social platforms to watch at your leisure.

“You’re in it, you’re with the characters, and when you’re with the characters, you’re enjoying that time. And that’s the approach to storytelling,” said Kreines. “It’s like your entry point, your level of depth that you want to explore, and we’re going to provide options for you to dig in or to stay where you’re at.” Knowing that these weekly cutscenes will be both brief and widely available for those who cannot — or maybe even don’t want to — boot up their PS5s was definitely reassuring.

But after seeing the first vignette, I have another concern: the writing just doesn’t seem up to snuff so far. As our first proper introduction to these characters, it’s pretty bland, with Haymar, our brooding mystic, offering some trite platitude about why everyone should “set your expectations low and prepare to be disappointed” and the bubbly Baymax-esque 1-Off saying he’ll speak to rival spacefarers “very sternly.” The flat writing also does a disservice to the voice acting, which is admittedly quite lively and naturally delivered, particularly for Lennox.

Of course, this is only the opening vignette, but it certainly doesn’t leave a strong first impression, especially considering the nearly five-minute cinematic from the State of Play. I was hoping to see something to help beat the repeated Guardians of the Galaxy comparisons, but I just didn’t. The rogueish Lennox is basically Star-Lord with scales, the hardened, pessimistic Haymar is quite reminiscent of Gamora and the lumbering, formal-speaking alien Star Child is just like Drax.

Lennox, Star Child and Haymar.

I’d love to be wrong, though. Something like Eidos Montreal’s criminally overlooked Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy was similarly panned pre-launch for looking like a poor man’s version of James Gunn’s beloved films, but those who played it discovered it was, in several ways, an even deeper and more profound exploration of the characters. The lack of a proper campaign means Concord will never reach such narrative highs, but I’m hoping its vignettes at least wind up being of a higher quality than they first appear.

That said, I do think the in-game environmental storytelling is so far faring a lot better, and it’s where the influence of Kreines — a former novelist and Magic: The Gathering worldbuilder — feels most apparent. This was best exemplified in my favourite map we got to experience, Water Hazard, a stormy fishing rig that’s been overrun with the body of a Kraken-esque sea creature called the Morack. In addition to the Morack’s fanged and tentacled carcass making for a memorably unique central point to the map, I found myself intrigued by the nature of this beast (Kreines said it’s from an “age of monsters”) and why people wanted to harvest it (to make paste, burgers and more with its meat).

“Every map provides unique information about our galaxy. The details are all planned — they all mean something in the greater story of our galaxy. You might see a broken moon in the sky box that’s hinting at the storm known as the Tempest. There are vats of spine wine […] Every piece of graffiti — it’s all intentional,” said Kreines. “It’s all there to help you, if you choose, to dive deeper into the narrative depth of our galaxy. You can always delve even deeper in the Galactic Guide, but you’ll get a taste for all of the stories that are unfolding just by playing on these maps.”

The future

Of course, multiplayer games live and die by their ongoing support, and Firewalk said it has a solid roadmap in place for Concord. This includes the 16 characters, 16 maps and six game modes at launch, as well as plans for free updates to add more of each of these types of content.

According to Jerome, Firewalk has been watching what other live services have done to determine what an appropriate amount of “completeness” of content, as well as how often updates should be rolled out.

“You don’t want any of that to feel like you have to go buy it or whatever, so making sure all of the depth and the strategy and all that stuff that we think is the magic is just available,” he said. “Now, we’re looking a lot at just cadence, as well, for balance — that’s another piece. We’re trying to watch other games and figure out what’s going to make sense for us, because ‘too fast’ means one thing, ‘too long’ means another thing. It’s not an all-or-nothing, either — we’ll probably just learn as we go.”

Judging Concord now, though? Yes, some — maybe even many — hardcore multiplayer gamers might not find enough unique about Concord, but I do think it has the potential to win over more casual players like me. That’s because my multiplayer game habits are very sporadic at best. Even looking back at the past few months, I would play Helldivers 2, Fortnite or Toronto-made Chivalry 2 with some friends for a few hours one night here and there, but the rest of my gaming time has been dedicated to single-player games.

With Concord, then, I love the idea that I can pretty easily jump in and out over time, not unlike an arena shooter. And to that point, I prefer PlayStation’s decision to charge $49.99 CAD upfront for Concord — which is already cheaper than many other games — and offer all post-launch character and map updates for free. (Firewalk says microtransactions will be sold, but only for some optional cosmetic items.) We’ve seen paywalled characters in such free-to-play games as Apex Legends and Overwatch 2, which only further adds to my feeling of being left behind for infrequently playing, so I’m glad Concord isn’t going that route.

And while Concord isn’t nearly as unique as many other multiplayer games — including Helldivers 2, Sony’s big live service success this year — I’m not sure it needs to be. In some cases, simply being a relatively straightforward gaming experience that strips away much of the bloat of its peers can be appealing in and of itself, and so far, that’s what I’m feeling with Concord. I do have some gripes so far — namely, with the game’s story and characters — but I hope to find more to love in the weeks to come. And if nothing else, jumping back into Lennox’s rooting-tooting shoes is certainly good ol’ reliable fun.

Concord will launch on PS5 and PC (Steam/Epic Games Store) on August 23rd. A $79.99 CAD Digital Deluxe Edition will offer 72-hour Early Access and special skins for each character. Additionally, those who pre-order either the Standard or Deluxe versions of the game will receive five codes for the Early Access beta from July 12th through July 14th. An open beta for all PS5 and PC players will then run from July 18th to 21st.

Image credit: PlayStation