Anti-LGBTQ+ bigots falsely claim that poor Concord sales were due to ‘pronouns’ and ‘wokeness’

PlayStation’s latest video game, Concord, has been shut down just one week after its initial launch date.

The first-person arena shooter released to incredibly low reviews and sales across PlayStation platforms and PC on 23 August.

After reports suggested that the live-service, always-online video game sold a startlingly low number of copies, Firwalk Studios’ game director, Ryan Ellis, announced that it would be going offline.

“We’ve been listening closely to your feedback since the launch of Concord on PlayStation 5 and PC and want to thank everyone who has joined the journey aboard the Northstar,” Ellis wrote.

“However, while many qualities of the experience resonated with players, we also recognised that other aspects of the game and our initial launch didn’t land the way we’d intended.

“At this time, we have decided to take the game offline beginning September 6 2024.”

The major studio title, which is estimated to have cost over $100 million, has reportedly sold just over 25,000 copies since its initial release date.

In an analysis of the situation, Forbes estimates that the game, which was the 147th most played game on PlayStation during its launch week and peaked under 700 on PC platform Steam, may have earned just $1 million.

According to Ellis, those who purchased the game from a digital storefront would receive a refund as soon as possible, while those who purchased physical copies were asked to “refer to the refund process of the retailer you purchased it from.”

“While we determine the best path ahead, Concord sales will cease immediately,” Ellis continued. “We’ll keep you updated and thank you again to all the Freegunners who have joined us in the Concord galaxy.”

Much of the backlash against the game, which cost $40 upon launch, stems from its bland gameplay and character designs that some have called “ugly” and “generic.”

Following the furore over the games’ poor performance, several anti-LGBTQ+ pundits attempted to chalk the games’ failure up to its inclusion of pronouns and so-called “woke” character designs.

One right-wing Quora post falsely states: “The developers of the game Concord have spent 250 million dollars, and pandered to trans, LGBTQ, and other DEI groups.“

Despite claims such as this, there is no indicator as to any of the characters’ sexualities, and only one character uses they/them pronouns. Concord is also far from the only game to use “pronouns.” Even the new Quiddich Champions Harry Potter game allows players to choose they/them pronouns.

The arena shooter, Overwatch, meanwhile, is filled to the brim with LGBTQ+ characters and is widely successful.