UK MotorStorm Apocalypse delayed

Sony has postponed the UK launch of MotorStorm: Apocalypse following last week's devastating earthquake.

The game was due out this Friday.

In a statement issued this morning, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe noted the unfortunate similarities between Apocalypse's fictional setting and the tragic events of last Friday.

"We are shocked and saddened to see the impact of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and our thoughts are with all those affected, including our colleagues within the Sony family, living and working throughout Japan," Sony said.

"We are very conscious of the parallels between these events and the underlying theme in MotorStorm and are doing everything we can to be as sensitive as possible to the situation.

"Although the game itself is already in distribution, we are ceasing any further shipments and removing as much of the marketing materials as possible."

Apocalypse, by UK studio Evolution, sees players drive around a San Francisco-inspired fictional US city as it is ravaged by an earthquake.

A statement from Sony Computer Entertainment UK added: "Although we have shipped the game into the channel last week, given that we are able to do so, we have chosen to postpone the launch in the UK. In the meantime we will continue to monitor the situation very closely."

Sony will donate 300 million Japanese yen to help relief and recovery efforts in communities affected by the disaster.

A disaster relief fund will collect donations across the Sony Group from employees worldwide, and their contributions will be matched by the company.

Sony will also donate 30,000 radios to assist the relief of earthquake victims.

Sony has been hit hard by the earthquake. The Tohoku region is historically important for Sony, with a high concentration of manufacturing sites, and many employees and their families have also been affected.

The earthquake has caused difficulty in connecting to the PlayStation Network in Japan. Sony has urged players to back up their data. Its PlayStation information call centre and repair centre were both suspended by the earthquake.