Syphon Filter delayed
In the US. But what of Europe?
With the immediate flow of Christmas releases now firmly blocked by a sturdy Yule log, we're gradually starting to turn toward the New Year and think about some of the big games due out in 2004. One of them is a PS2 Online update to the Syphon Filter series, dubbed The Omega Strain.
And guess what? It's slipped. In the US at least. We haven't heard back from Sony UK about it at the time of writing, but according to numerous reports the game's release date has now been revised from a solid "February 2004" to a rather weedy and non-committal "Spring 2004" in the USA.
Syphon Filter had originally been set for release in the UK at least in March alongside fellow online action title SOCOM II and Sony's London-developed This Is Football 2004 (also online). We'd conservatively guestimate something like a couple of months' slippage, although it'll be interesting to see whether the differences between PS2 Online infrastructure in the US and Europe once again rise up to thwart an early release. Bear in mind SOCOM II has been out in the US for a while now and isn't due here until March...
As for the delay... Although the game has appeared at both E3 in Los Angeles and The PlayStation Experience at London's Earls Court this year, the creative team apparently wants more time. Speaking in a joint statement, creative director John Garvin and technical director Chris Reese of the curiously named Sony Bend development studio said they are convinced it will be worth the extra time.
"The team took a close look at how much tuning and gameplay balancing was necessary to complete the game with our original vision intact," the pair said this week. "We then decided to take some additional time to implement that extra bit of polish into the game."