Arkane Studios has announced the sad news that Deathloop has been delayed to next year. The first-person shooter was meant to be a timed PlayStation 5 exclusive coming out together with the console this Holiday.
To the community, an update on DEATHLOOP: pic.twitter.com/XveoG6AgoT
— DEATHLOOP (@deathloop) August 18, 2020
Game delays aren’t anything new or special – especially this year – but when you’re talking about the launch of a new console and launch-exclusives, things become very different.
Originally unveiled in 2019, just a couple months ago we learned that Deathloop was going to be a timed console-exclusive for Sony’s next-gen system. Exclusivity deals are getting more and more complicated, so let’s break it down. The game was going to launch on PC and PS5 day and date, but other consoles (Xbox Series X) would get their version after a set time.
Seeing how launch games have always been critical to the success of a console early on, the delay of Deathloop matters in more than just one way. Thankfully, Sony has a couple of other big guns already pointed for the PS5 launch with Spier-Man Miles Morales being the undoubted big launch title.
Arkane is citing difficulties due to a work-from-home environment as reasons for the delay. An understandable point, given how so many other games have been postponed in 2020 already due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
We hope the extra time will give the developers the opportunity to create an outstanding product in the end. Deathloop is probably one of the most ambitious AAA shooters in the works with its core mechanic focusing on the titular loop that starts the game over with every death. Imagine Groundhog Day just as a game, and lots of shooting.
