According to GameSpot, Sony is actively shutting down fan efforts to revive its disastrous live-service shooter Concord through DMCA takedowns. The game lasted just two weeks before being pulled entirely, leading to developer Firewalk Studios closing down. Now the company Marscan—which monitors online content for Sony—has filed copyright claims against videos of Concord Delta, a fan-made revival project. The developers behind the custom server project have paused invites due to “worrying legal action” and fear broader legal repercussions. So far only footage on platforms like YouTube has been targeted, not the actual custom servers themselves. This comes after the UK House of Commons actually cited Concord as an example of why video game preservation matters.
Sony’s preservation problem
Here’s the thing that really gets me about this situation. Sony completely failed with Concord—they refunded everyone, shut down the developer, and pulled the game entirely. But when fans try to preserve what little existed, they come down with legal hammers. It’s this weird contradiction where companies want to move on from failures but also control what happens to them forever.
And honestly, what’s the harm? The game was dead, the money was returned, the studio closed. Let the dozen people who actually cared enough to resurrect this thing have their fun. It’s not like they’re competing with an active product or costing Sony revenue. This feels more about control than protection.
The broader trend
This isn’t just about Concord though. We’re seeing this pattern everywhere with live-service games. They launch, they fail, they disappear forever. But unlike single-player games that you can usually still play years later, these always-online experiences just vanish. Poof. Gone.
What happens to gaming history when so much of it exists only on corporate servers? When companies can decide that something never existed? That’s the real concern here, and it’s why the UK government actually brought up Concord in preservation discussions. We’re losing chunks of gaming culture because of business decisions.
Look, I get that companies need to protect their IP. But there’s got to be a middle ground between active commercial protection and digital archaeology. When something is commercially dead and buried, maybe we should allow preservation efforts to exist in some form. Otherwise, we’re just erasing history because it was embarrassing for the corporation.
What this means for fan projects
The Concord Delta team thought they were being careful—keeping the player circle small, not making a big public splash. But Sony still found them through their video content. That’s the scary part for preservation efforts. You can try to fly under the radar, but anything that touches public platforms seems to get noticed eventually.
Basically, if you’re thinking about reviving a dead game, you’d better be prepared to go completely dark. No videos, no streams, no public discussion. And even then, there’s always the risk that the legal team comes knocking. It’s creating this weird underground where gaming history has to hide.
So where does this leave us? With more dead games disappearing forever, and corporations increasingly controlling what parts of gaming history we get to experience. Not exactly a great trend for a medium that’s supposed to be about creativity and community.
