Scalpers Cash In on Concord with Outrageous Prices

As the shutdown of Concord approaches, scalpers are taking advantage of the situation by inflating the prices of physical copies of the PS5-exclusive hero shooter. With just days left before the game's servers go offline, and digital purchases on PlayStation 5 and PC already unavailable, the demand for physical copies has surged.

Announced in May, Concord faced significant criticism for entering an already crowded hero shooter market and for its art style reminiscent of Guardians of the Galaxy, which failed to win over many gamers. Additionally, the game's low player count on Steam, estimated at around 25,000 total copies sold across PS5 and PC, signaled trouble. Sony's decision to shut down Concord on September 6 came as a disappointment to those hoping for a turnaround.

With digital sales halted, physical copies are now the only way for gamers to experience Concord before its servers are taken offline. This scarcity has led scalpers on eBay to list the game's physical copies at exorbitant prices, averaging around $149.99 for a PS5 version. Some listings have reached as high as $25,000 for a sealed copy, an astounding 625 times the game's original MSRP of $39.99.

eBay Scalpers Inflating Prices

- Average Price: The typical price for a Concord PS5 copy on eBay is approximately $149.99.

- Highest Listing: One particularly outrageous listing has a sealed copy priced at $25,000.

- DualSense Controllers: Limited Edition Concord DualSense controllers, initially sold by PlayStation Direct for $84.99, are also being scalped. Prices for these controllers have more than doubled, with some listings reaching $199.99 and $299.99.

Despite these inflated prices, there is noticeable interest from buyers, as some eBay users are actively monitoring these listings.

While Concord will be offline for the foreseeable future, the developers are exploring ways to "better reach" players, hinting that a potential free-to-play version might be in the works if Sony decides to relaunch the game at a later date. However, overcoming the negative sentiment and apathy surrounding the game will be a significant challenge.

In the meantime, Concord's universe will continue to find a place in popular culture through an upcoming episode of Secret Level by Amazon, set to premiere on December 10. The exact air date for the Concord episode is still to be determined.