Kojima ashamed of Japanese MGS delay
"There is no greater crime."
Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima has made a heartfelt apology for the delay to the Japanese release of the latest entry in the series, the PSP's Peace Walker.
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker was due to be released on 18th March in the country, but on Friday Konami announced an eleventh-hour delay, pushing it back to 29th April. The North American and European release dates - 25th and 28th May respectively - are not affected.
"I always preach to the staff, 'You must not have a delay after a release date has been announced. There is no greater crime as a game developer,'" Kojima confessed in a blog post translated by Andriasang.
"Official announcement of a release date is nothing less than a promise to fans and business partners. In other words, a release date change is like betraying the expectations of everyone... It probably takes a long time to earn back trust that has been lost. However we will work hard, with the hope that we will one day earn the support of everyone again."
It didn't seem to take that much time. According to Andriasang, Kojima's post was met with messages of sympathy, forgiveness and support from fans in the comments thread.
Yes, that's gamers responding to disappointing news by rushing en masse to write something nice on the internet. It's a different world.