Regardless of what the reasons are, 2020 has already seen its fair share of game delays. These are the five biggest games that have been delayed thus far this year.
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Cyberpunk 2077
Perhaps the biggest, but least surprising, delay of 2020 thus far is the delay of CD Projekt Red’s long awaited RPG Cyberpunk 2077’s release date to September 17, 2020. Cyberpunk 2077 was originally set to launch in the very busy month of April, the same month as Resident Evil 3 and Final Fantasy, but now only one of those games is still set to release in April. CD Projekt Red has a history of taking a long time to make games and its titles are often met with multiple delays throughout the development cycle.
The reasoning behind the push makes Cyberpunk one of the more troubling delays, however. As a response to being asked about the working conditions necessary to get the game ready for September, Projekt Red CEO Adam Kiciński’s said, “To some degree, yes - to be honest. We try to limit crunch as much as possible, but it is the final stage. We try to be reasonable in this regard, but yes. Unfortunately.“CD Projekt Red has a history of being pretty open about how much its team works extra hours to make its games. On one hand this honesty is appreciated, but on the other hand, it is still not the best look.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake
The other biggest release of early 2020 was delayed, but only a little bit. The long-anticipated remake of Final Fantasy 7 was delayed from March to April 10. The first part of the multi-part JRPG was pushed a few weeks in order for the developers to get those final touches done in time, according to Square Enix producer Yoshinori Kitase.
“We are making this tough decision in order to give ourselves a few extra weeks to apply final polish to the game and to deliver with you the best possible experience,” said Kitase. “I, on behalf of the whole team, want to apologize to everyone, as I know this means waiting for the game just a little bit longer.”
Marvel’s Avengers
The first big Marvel game post the end of the MCU’s Infinity Saga was originally slated for May 2020. Now, Marvel’s Avengers has been delayed to September 4. This positions it as one of the first big games of fall 2020, but still gives it two weeks to breath before Cyberpunk comes out. It can be argued that all delays result in better more polished games, but in the case of Marvel’s Avengers, this might be especially true. The pre-release footage that has been shown so far has looked a bit rough for such a high profile release. Notably, this is also the second Square Enix delay of early 2020.
Developer Crystal Dynamics gave no specific reasons for the delay but wrote “we will spend this additional development time focusing on fine-tuning and polishing the game to the high standards our fans expect and deserve,” in an official statement.
Iron Man VR
Probably the most anticipated virtual reality game of 2020 just got hit with a delay. A few days ago, Iron Man VR was delayed from February to May 15, 2020. This is a decently significant delay, but it makes sense for Marvel at least. The Playstation VR exclusive is now going to come out in the Spring slot that Marvel’s Avengers occupied before it was delayed. This also just happens to coincide with the release date of the next MCU film, Black Widow, which has a release date of May 1, 2020.
Developer Camouflaj released a statement announcing the delay on its official Twitter account. The developer indicates that this delay is necessary in order to “meet the high expectations of [its] amazing community.” The statement is vague and gives little insight into the process, but hopefully, it results in a stronger VR experience, a type of game that is lacking as of late. Iron Man VR could be a major hit that moves PSVR units and its worth the delay to ensure its polish and stability.
Dying Light 2
A game that was a little under-the-radar, but secretly had great combat and parkour, was the original Dying Light. Today, it was announced that Dying Light 2 was delayed from Spring 2020 until further into the year, presumably late summer or in the fall. The game is planning on advancing upon the core of the original, while also adding interesting moral choices and nuanced storytelling with the help of lead writer and industry veteran Chris Avellone. There is currently no new release date or release window for Dying Light 2.
In a statement on Twitter, developer Techland wrote a statement claiming, “we were initially aiming for a Spring 2020 release with Dying Light 2, but unfortunately we need more development time to fulfill our vision. We will have more to share in the coming months, and will get back to you as soon as we have more information.”
Fall 2020 Will Be Big for Games
All these delays point to games that are trying to launch at the tail end of the current generation of consoles before the PS5 and Xbox Series X launch in Winter 2020. This is already trending towards a jam-packed early fall, with Cyberpunk and Avengers being delayed into September. September and October 2020 will be two of the biggest months for games this year, especially when more games inevitably get pushed into this window. While little is known about the launch titles of the next generation, it still seems like the back half of 2020 will be a huge time for new games.
MORE: Cyberpunk 2077 & 9 Other Video Games That Have The Record For Delaying Release Dates
