Firewall Ultra, the tactical team shooter launched in 2023, seemed to vanish from the radar when its developer, First Contact Entertainment, ceased operations late that same year. Surprisingly, however, Sony has recently issued an update, unexpectedly revamping the game’s rewards system in a bid to entice new players—though their exact motives remain unclear.
Redditor ‘ROBYER1’ was quick to notice the change, reporting that over the weekend, Sony released an update that dramatically increases the amount of XP and in-game currency, known as ‘Crypto’. This makes it significantly easier for fresh players to unlock cosmetics and other items that the game typically encourages players to work towards.
But why make these changes now? Content creator ‘Gamertag VR’ offers some insight in a recent video. Gamertag outlines not only the problematic history of the game but also ventures a few theories on Sony’s potential motivations. In their words, “This update is clearly aimed at new players. Sony might be planning to add Firewall Ultra to PlayStation Plus for February, there could be a renewed interest in the game, or perhaps they’re prepping for a major sale.”
These possibilities are certainly on the table, though there’s also a less optimistic scenario to consider. It’s conceivable Sony is giving Firewall Ultra one final lifeline, given its lackluster sales and dwindling user base throughout 2024, which could be steering it towards delisting. Despite this uncertainty, Firewall Ultra remains on sale at $40—a pretty hefty tag for a game unlikely to receive substantial content updates in the future.
The game hit the shelves in August 2023, aiming to capture the magic of Firewall Zero Hour (2018) on the original PSVR. Although positioned as a top-tier shooter for PSVR 2, Firewall Ultra stumbled on several fronts. From the outset, critics highlighted issues with its control scheme, limited gameplay variety, and progression system, which unfortunately led to a less-than-stellar Metacritic score of 61/100.
In the months following its launch, First Contact endeavored to address these concerns with multiple patches. These updates tackled aiming mechanics, introduced new maps, made balancing tweaks, and launched an Assignments system for leveling and unlocking new gear. Nevertheless, these efforts failed to amass the player base First Contact hoped for, leading to the studio’s December 2023 announcement that industry-wide VR support shortcomings had necessitated its closure.
