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THQ has delayed South Park: The Stick of Truth, Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last Light.
Both Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last Light are now expected to launch during March 2013. South Park: The Stick of Truth, meanwhile, is expected to launch in early fiscal 14, likely meaning April, May or June 2013. South Park had previously been due to launch on March 5, 2013.
Discussing the delays, THQ president Jason Rubin said: “When I joined THQ the company made a public commitment to quality titles. We always expected that in some cases this would mean that more time would be needed to make sure that every title is of the highest possible quality.
“Our fourth quarter releases are the first titles that I have had the ability to materially impact, and experience told me that the games needed additional development time to be market-ready.”
Rubin expanded on his comments during THQ’s Q2 2013 earnings conference call last night.
“Company of Heroes 2, Metro: Last Light and South Park: The Stick of Truth were all challenged and were guaranteed to fall significantly short of their design specs if they were forced to make their announced release schedules,” he said (transcribed by Seeking Alpha).
“Additionally, in light of the aforementioned marketplace changes, even if completed, it would not have had the extra time dedicated to the polish needed to make them shine in this competitive environment. The resulting 2-month delay on each title is almost de minimis by game industry standards.”
However, Rubin says that each game’s delay poses “further risk for the company”, which last night posted a net loss of $12.1m for Q2 FY13.
But Rubin still believes that THQ has a bright future ahead.
“I’m excited and satisfied with the content size, positioning and our slate going forward,” he continued. “The 10 projects in production within THQ are as good a lineup as we could hope for.”
Source: THQ Press Release/Seeking Alpha
