Metro: Last Light finally has a release date

It's been a rough road for Metro: Last Light. The game was originally due out in 2012, only to be delayed into 2013. Then THQ went bankrupt, bringing even more uncertainty to the game's release. Today, the speculation finally ends.

Koch Media, the eventual purchaser of the intellectual property rights for Metro (and Saints Row), announced that Metro: Last Light will release on May 14, 2013 in North America and May 17, 2013 across Europe. It will be available on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC.

“The new release date is the ideal way to strike the balance between bringing the best out of Metro: Last Light and not keep the fans waiting longer than necessary,” said Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, CEO of Koch Media. “We won’t leave that time unexploited and will work closely together with 4A Games to make the game even better. It will receive all the attention it deserves.”

Metro: Last Light is the sequel to Metro 2033. Set in the year 2034, the world has been ravaged by nuclear war. In Moscow, the tunnels function as the new home for former inhabitants of the city, a safe haven from the hordes of mutants born from the toxic atmosphere. The plot was written by Dmitry Glukhovsky, the acclaimed author of the novel Metro 2033.

I last saw Metro: Last Light at E3 2012. At the time it looked like the game was returning more to its survival-horror roots. Unfortunately, our preview was cut short due to a bug in the early build of the game. How the game plays now is beyond me. Outside of a few trailers and screenshots, we really haven't seen much of the game. Hopefully we don't head into May totally in the dark.