It's been a bit of a strange week in the world of video games, hasn't it? In amongst Sony's withdrawal from E3 2020 and all but confirmation of Horizon: Zero Dawn heading to PC with more PlayStation 4 exclusives set to follow, two of the year's biggest games were delayed. Final Fantasy VII Remake was pushed back by a month while Cyberpunk 2077 won't be launching until September. They're the two big hitters, but the delays of Marvel's Avengers and Marvel's Iron Man VR solidified a stretch of five days where it feels like we've put the 2020 celebration on ice. Of course, every PS4 game mentioned is still set to launch this year, although it's impossible to ignore the sense of disappointment which comes with every delay.
That's not disappointment in the teams at the likes of CD Projekt Red and Square Enix working their collective butts off to get these monumental projects ready in time for release, however. It feels like an all round groan and acceptance of what was inevitable. These are titles that will define the current generation and so they need as much time to cook as possible, but when it comes to actually covering them, it has made for a week of unease.
Both Final Fantasy VII Remake and Marvel's Avengers were delayed on the Tuesday, Cyberpunk 2077 on the Thursday, and Marvel's Avengers VR earlier today. Is that normal? Delays are very much commonplace in the video game industry nowadays, but to have four come about back to back in such a short space of time has had a sobering effect on our hype levels.
It also dramatically changes the PS4 release schedule. Remember when Ubisoft's Gods & Monsters and Watch Dogs Legion were slated for February and March respectively? The Last of Us: Part II was originally dated for a late February launch before being delayed to May just weeks after the release date announcement. Had none of these push backs occurred, PS4 players were in for an absolutely wild three-month stretch. Hit after hit would have kept us busy here at Push Square, so is there a positive to take out of this?
Before any more delays are announced, let's look at what 2020 now looks like. March boasts of Nioh 2, DOOM Eternal, and Persona 5 Royal while April's slate now includes Resident Evil 3, the aforementioned Final Fantasy VII Remake, Predator: Hunting Grounds, and Trials of Mana. It's still a good two month stretch of quality content, but it's certainly not what it could have been. Team Ninja and Bethesda will surely be chuffed about the entire thing, however, as their titles now have much more room to breathe -- resulting in extra sales and profit.
All the games covered in this article are still coming this year, and that's great, so how does your wallet feel about the situation? Have these delays allowed you to shift focus to the somewhat smaller titles you were originally going to wait for a discount on? Do you always take delays as a positive, or does there come a point where it's time to put up or shut up? Make sure to take part in the following poll and share your thoughts in the comments below.
Comments 73
Nope I'm literally not buying anything till PS5 so I'm good with whatever.
Meh. S#it happens.
I'm just gutted that I now won't be playing Cyberpunk 2077 until September. I'll be buying it the day of release on PS4, even if there's a PS5 version a few months later.
I'm with waiting, I just devs weren't in constant crunch.
I mean... I'm never HAPPY about delays, but I'd prefer a delay to a rushed and buggy game at launch.
Between my backlog, Animal Crossing in March, and FF7R in April, though, I'm perfectly set for the next several months.
The chances of me actually playing the games on release is so slim due to my ridiculous backlog that delays never bother half as much as they used to.As long as I have something decent to play im fine with it...Although that doesant mean I'll be fine with waiting for the final Episode of Final Fantasy VII Remake until 2030..
While itβs a shame to have a longer wait to play something Iβm excited about, itβs totally for the best for the final experience that the developers take as long as they need. Anything that avoids or lessens crunch is always good.
It's fine. Delays happen.
Nothing we, the consumers, can really do about it except wait a little longer.
How could I best disappointed? Within around a 3 week period I'll be getting Doom Eternal, Resident Evil 3 and Final Fantasy VII. So pretty much all of my most anticipated games. Iron Man VR isn't too far away and now I'll probably end up playing Cyberpunk on a next gen machine instead and the Avengers game looked poor anyway. I might even get The Last of Us 2 now as I wouldn't have had time to play it before the delays.
Overall a very happy gamer
Not really, the marvel and cyber punk games I actually have low expectations for and wasn't particularly anticipating those. But im in dire need of planet coaster.
Iβm happy with waiting. Iβve got a vast pile of backlog to work through and aside from one or two games, Iβm buying nothing now until I get a PS5 when theyβre out.
"It's time to play"
Well it will be at some point π
Delays have been a pet peeve of mine since Reggie at E3 in 2007 with SSBB which was delayed not once but twice after he made such a big deal about the release date live on stage.
Sure, it's a first world problem and there are much more important things in life to get annoyed about, but we're still getting lied to and eating the lies up and begging for more. I find the whole thing quite disturbing.
But that huge live FFXV event kind of broke me. If you can rent out an entire auditorium and hire a live orchestra for the express reason of announcing one games release date, then like a month later you delay that one game, well that's that. Though I suppose it could be worse, game could have been canceled after the event, like the 2nd batch of DLC was, but still, it's insane.
So now I just expect it. Like how everyone now accepts loot boxes and DLC even though gamers lost their collective minds over horse armor, but now it's the norm. Delays are the norm. Release dates shouldn't even be a thing any more, but we all know now half the times it's just lies anyway. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me 200 or 300 times, well eventually I'll catch on.
But it's still ridiculous.
Rushed games will only result in final products like FFXV. A great game but you inevitably realize it could have been so much more if they didnt cut content just so they can make a release window. Take your time, we can wait.
No at all, I wouldn't have money to buy Cyberpunk right now. September is far away enough xD
Looking forward to stuff is fun so, it ainβt so bad.
Nintendo philosophy here. A rushed game is forever bad, a delayed game is eventually good.
Nope, my backlog is still huge, on ps4, epic games store and gamepass pc. It actually nice that I can relax playing DS and jedi fallen order while waiting for ff7r and ps5
ooff to think that TLOU2 was originally a bit over a month away and now we have to wait a couple of months more does hurt a bit yes.
but i do understand the delays.
it's just part of the course i think when releasing a major game in the year new consoles come out.
it ups the pressure more than usual which results in overtime but also in delays in order to avoid to much crunch.
it sucks for the fans but it's the best for the devs.
I wasn't happy FFVII was moved so close to Cyberpunk but then that moved back so at least they aren't crowding each other...
Cyberpunk being so close to the PS5's release means I might just wait and play it on the stronger console. Looking forward to seeing how PS4 games work and if they just run better or will look better too with patches or whatever.
Not at all. There is so much to play on Playstation I couldn't possibly be upset about a few games we had already been waiting ages for. The wait is only a little bit longer...
No - time is nothing but a social construct, designed to make sense of the universe in which we live.
Also I'm always skint for the first four months of the year. But mainly the social construct thing.
Yeah, I'm disappointed as I was really looking forward to playing Cyberpunk 2077. However, if they need more time to make the final product as good as possible then the delay is for the best.
Not only do i have more than enough games spanning generations to keep my occupied for the months ahead, anything that will reduce the amount of crunch time developers will have to go through is worth it in my book.
Unfortunately it does look like that for at least cyberpunk that is likely to still take place during the extra time.
My only problem with it is I work a full time job in IT, and I have to space out games I want to play with what little free time i have. I wanted to play The Last of Us at the beginning of the year then Cyberpunk, and then Ghost of Tsuhima, and they were all spread out perfectly just before whatever was gonna release on the PS5. Now everything is gonna be crammed between the last 6 months of the year (May thru November). So now instead of buying each one of those games I'm probably gonna have to just choose one since it takes me a few months to finish a game with my schedule. But I'm not terribly worried about it though. It's the developers losing money not me. I'm sure there's plenty of other ppl in the same situation.
As a patient man with a busy life and a huge backlog, I could not care less. It's not like I would play them at launch anyway. I'd rather wait a few months and get them for a fraction of the initial price.
I never understood why it's so hard for some people to wait a bit.
Iβm a teacher, so was VERY much looking forward to playing FFVIIR on my spring breakβsooooo... bummer! But I bought so many cheap games In my backlog over the holidays, I think Iβll be alright.. π
And delay Cyberpunk as much as you need to guysβbring that polish!
i can't sit here and say i wasn't disappointed that FFVII Remake was delayed BUT it is only a little over a month AND if it means that the game is better and more polished then i'm OK with it
in fact i would rather a game be delayed to make it the best it can be than have the game pushed out the door unfinished and broken like so many big AAA games tend to do now a days
Iβm ok with the delays. As long as the games release with no game breaking bugs, will be fine. Itβs better to see releases spread out over the year. Me personally will be buying Last Of Us 2 & Dying Light 2 day one, regardless of their release date. I would wait to play them on PS5, but I canβt wait that long. Them 2 are my most anticipated games.
I have a backlog as big as the Coran, so I'm ok with waiting.
Iβm pretty disappointed FFVII Remake was pushed back, donβt get me wrong, Iβd rather a more complete game, but Iβm still disappointed. I get very little game time between work, school and family life and my wife knew I was really looking forward to this so she was going to take my son out for the weekend so I could sit back and play all weekend. Unfortunately, the delay puts in on Easter weekend, Iβm an atheist so it means nothing to me, but itβs important to my wife and in-laws so my wife wonβt be taking our son out for the weekend and I try to be supportive of her beliefs so Iβll be there on Easter with them. Itβs not a huge deal, but still a bit disappointing.
Iron Man VR was the only thing I was disappointed in. Not bothered about the rest. FF7Re is gonna take a coupon decades to finish so we may as well buckle down for the wait.
My big one, P5: The Royal wasnβt delayed so Iβm alright there.
I don't really highly anticipate stuff. I only get excited at least about a month to release. Till then I'm fine enjoying the games available right now that used to be highly anticipated.
I have to say the shock of Cyberpunk delay disappointed at first, but I still understand these thing happen. I quickly accepted the new date and moved on like nothing happened.
Nah, I've a huge backlog to play through. Starting from PS3. I'm perfectly fine with delays.
Nope I actually love delays lmao. I play a wide variety of games, so when they put so many interesting games into a single point of a year, it's frustrating. I have to decide which ones to spend on while time is also nearing the next batch of games that will release within days of themselves too.
And in this case I was ready to sacrifice Nioh 2 and CyberPunk so I could play FF7, trials of Mana, and Persona 5. Now I don't think I'll have to. And plus, they delay to make the game better anyway. So unless you have some sort of gaming drought, delays are really just good thing. At least from the consumer side.
as if anyone is actually going to play every single tentpole release on release day anyways, and with the intent to actually complete the game. who has the money for that, let alone the time? the average completion % of most games is below 30%. yes, that means less than 30% of people actually complete the games they start (on average anyways, there are some exceptions of course). most dabble with a game for a few hours before moving onto something else. should anyone actually care that THOSE people won't be able to play cyberpunk on release day and take their complaining seriously? i don't think so.
I have a funny feeling even after the delay cyberpunk will be buggy. I'll be waiting a few months after it launches and by that stage, it may be better to get on a next gen console.
Delays don't bother me past muttering "oh man" under my breath like Swiper getting denied at the exact moment he's about to swipe.
Then I move on. Also backlog. So much backlog. Not complaining! Just..whew.
Nope.i can wait.my backlog of games are huge.so i dont care.word up son
I can wait. I have plenty to keep me busy until FF VII remake, and Cyberpunk 2077 release.
If a game needs to be delayed, do it, but yeah, Iβm really freaking disappointed. Iβm aware of every big games release dates but the only two I care about up to September are Doom and TLoU2. 2 freaking games. Iβve had GameFly for around a decade because I constantly had a new game I wanted to play but I cancelled it this past month. I miss the PS3 gen. The Motorstorm franchise, Uncharted franchise, The Resistance franchise, the Little Big Planet franchise, the Arkham franchise, GTA 4 and 5, Bioshock 1-3, RDR, Demon and Dark Souls (Those types of games are getting really old to me now), Spec Ops the Line, and Infamous franchise. Iβll stop there as I could go on and on.
Iβm calling this, Cyberpunkβs release date will be extremely close or on the day of the Xbox Series X release. I wish they would have just called it the Xbox 2, itβs a freaking mouthful. Also, at E3, there will be some big partnership with exclusive content or whatever with Cyberpunk and the Series X.
Fine with me. I can barely keep up with all these games anyways. Perfectly fine playing games from a year or more ago.
I think the only game Iβm buying this year for PS4 is TLOU 2 anyway. Gotta save for the 2 PS5s Iβll have to buy for Christmas.
It's fine. I've got more than enough to play on Switch.
PS4 has been out a long time now. I expect the big releases to slow down and also to be held back for simultaneous PS5 release.
In Japan if a train is delayed it's a National crisis.............My worry is these delays are edging close to the PS5 coming out.
This whole week feels like a Craig David song about game delays.
Its been quite a disappointing week - even if it ultimately benefits us as gamers.
I am more disappointed by delays to games that had a full release date. If I hear that a game is looking to release in 2020 or even Q1 or Q2, if it gets 'delayed' or pushed back, I am not all that disappointed. If that game was expected on Feb 1st 2020, that's a big difference. Its like a contract with the customer.
I think no game should get a specific release date until the Publisher is 99% certain it will be met - the 1% allowing for external unforeseen issues that they had no control over. Until then, a vague slot should suffice - like Q1-2020 for example. Then if it gets 'moved' to Q3 or Q4, its not so disappointing. I know some people that will book time off to play a game on its release date so its even more disappointing. A vague window is enough until they can provide a release date they can guarantee to meet!
As some one who would like to play games on release but can't afford them, usually for quite a while anyway, it doesn't really make a difference to me, other than to say that it should be seen as a good thing, because then the games should be better on release and not freely rushed, and will be less likely to have bugs and need frequent updates.
With a massive backlog of games on PS4, a pile of comics and novels, movies on blu ray and whatever catches my eye on Netflix I think I'll be OK with the delays. Gaming is one of many hobbies.
At this point, might just wait around to see if there are PS5 versions of any of these and just wait a few months.
The reason we look forward to games is because we expect them to be better than the many good unplayed games that are already available for the PS4. Delaying them if they are not ready is the right choice. I want to play something good. I will always be able to find something now. Even without buying more stuff I have access to both PlayStation plus games Iβve never started and games members of my family have bought that I have yet to play.
I'm not bothered at all. This year is going to be crazy for games and things are a bit more spaced out for me with the games I am planning to buy, so I welcome it.
And also, I would much rather a company takes its time to get something into good shape. As far as I'm concerned, it's all good. Here's to an awesome 2020!
To be honest, delays feel normal now.
Not disappointed at all. FF7 I won't be getting until they release the Complete Edition, and personally I think you're a fool to pay $180 for all 3 parts of a single game. Cyberpunk I'm definitely not getting after playing TW3, while enjoyable it's highly flawed and not deserving of many of the accolades it received. I expect Cyberpunk to be unjustly inflated too. Avengers looks like a bargain bin game when I've exhausted all the good games I want to play, and I don't plan on getting VR anytime soon unless it comes packaged with the PS5 (and it should).
I'm glad they're being delayed from a consumer standpoint, but for the devs it means more unsavory working conditions due to lackluster management. Either way their delay has no effect on me.
Tbh, it gives me more time to make a dent in my backlog, otherwise they will be joining me on the PS5. (if the rumors are true about backwards compatibility) π
Totally bummed about Cyberpunk but it what it is, but hey Last of Us 2 is not long now so I'm looking forward to that.
Iβve got a backlog on my Sega Genesis, so....yeah, I can handle waiting. Plenty of good stuff to keep me occupied.
Don't care for FF whatsoever and was only planning on getting Cyberpunk once it had been patched a few dozen times and the inevitable GOTY edition was released.
As for everyone banging on about crunch ReeesetEra is that way -->
You don't care about well paid people working overtime any more than you care about the Foxconn workers building the PS4's we all own in Chinese sweatshops for a pittance. Enough with the virtue signalling.
I'd always rather they give a game more time to develop. In Cyberpunk's case I'm tempted to even wait slightly longer for PS5. It'd feel like a long wait though, ha. Even if there's a PS5/Enhanced update version on launch day.
No, developers should take as much time as they need!
@Ear_wiG bring that Polish indeed π
(Sorry πππ)
Yeah really disappointed tbh. I totally get that things take longer than expected and the last thing I want is a buggy broken game that I've been looking forward to for years but why give a release date until 100% sure you can meet it?? Just builds up our hopes and then bulldozer them!!
I'm another one with one of those huge backlogs, and I'm not planning on getting either of those games, so I personally don't care. That said, they should delay things like that if needed to avoid crunch and have a more quality product. It can only benefit the people who actually are looking forward to them.
Absolutely not. Of course it's sad but it just means they will be better games at the end.
Also this might actually be my chance to finish some of my backlog games...
In the last week or so I finished COD MW, Control, Death Stranding and Jedi Fallen Order!
Better that developers realease games that are ready to go out of the box, than that they do a Bethesda; that would be far more disappointing.
I dont mind delays so we get a more polished game aslong as the big titles are a few months apart from each other. Final fantasy being released 6 days before cyberpunk would of been aweful so im happy theyve delayed it till september now. Think we all knew that would happen.
I have a backlog of games to clear, so this doesn't bother me at all.
@Nyne11Tyme Crackdown 3 would like to have a word
As long as resi 3 dont get delay, I don't give a sh*t for the other games.
@3MonthBeef eh. 40 + hours of content is worth admission. I believe when they say full game per installment
@3MonthBeef - It just boils my piss when people pretend to care about something as insignificant as devs overtime. If these folk really cared about working conditions they wouldn't even own the machines to play the games on. From mineral mining upwards there's a whole bunch of stuff far more horrific going on than working overtime in a warm office.
Kind of disappointed, but not exactly for the delays.
I prefer a delay than a rushed game.
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