Sony’s upcoming live-service shooter Concord is due to launch next month on PS5 and PC. Ahead of its full release, Concord is hosting two betas (more like demo sessions, being this close to launch), with the first taking place right now. These are a good way of judging the public’s excitement levels, and frankly, it isn’t looking good on the PC side.
According to SteamDB which tracks all sorts of juicy details and data, the Concord beta, which is due to finish today, attracted just 1,124 concurrent players when it became accessible a few days ago on July 12. Those numbers quickly dropped, with a peak concurrent player count of 933 the following day, and then just 630 on July 14.
Now, there are quite a few factors we need to consider here. For example, this beta was only available to those who pre-ordered the game or to players with an active PlayStation Plus Extra subscription. We also don’t know how many console players there have been so that it could have done far better on Sony’s machine. The next beta will be open absolutely everyone, so we can probably expect stronger numbers.
It’s also worth noting that people who pre-ordered the game were given not one but five beta codes for themselves and their pals, which should have resulted in more players.
The writing was also somewhat on the wall because prior to the beta going live, access was only going to be given to people who pre-ordered the game. However, just days before the beta went online Sony announced that PS Plus Extra subscribers would also get to play, sparking speculation that the pre-order numbers were weak and that Sony was worried about not having enough people to fill the servers.
As for the general reception, it has been fairly mixed. For the most part, it seems people think the beta was decent but that nothing stood out or really grabbed their attention. With the full release of Concord happening on August 20, Sony and developer Firewalk Studios will really be hoping the next open beta (July 18-21) brings in a lot more players.
