Originally slated for release in the latter half of 2018, publisher THQ Nordic announced in their earnings report that Metro: Exodus has been delayed into the first quarter of 2019. Remember that THQ Nordic acquired Metro: Exodus publisher Deep Silver earlier this year when they bought up Koch Media, so Metro now falls under their jurisdiction.
No reason was given for the delay, so it’s unknown if the acquisition had any impact on the game’s development. Whatever the reason, the delay will allow the developers to polish up the game and make it better when players finally get their hands on it. The Metro: Exodus delay also pushes it away from major fall 2018 releases that it would otherwise compete with. Putting it at the start of 2019 not only allows for more development time, but gives it more room to breathe without being crowded out by other big names like Call of Duty, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Spider-Man.
Despite the delay, we’ve gotten a look at some pretty cool details surrounding the upcoming Metro: Exodus, and its scope quickly makes it apparent why the delay is a good thing. According to one of the developers, the levels are bigger than those of Metro 2033 and Last Light combined. While it’s not exactly open world, each level will allow the player complete freedom to move around within it once they reach that specific area.
While we’re happy that the game is getting more time for development, there’s a pretty big downside to the delay. One of the recent trailers featured an Easter egg that allegedly gave away the exact Metro: Exodus release date. Now that the game has been delayed, that Easter egg has no chance of coming true.
As of last year, Metro: Exodus was not going to have any exclusive content on any platforms, but with the original publisher under new ownership, we’re not sure how that may change some decisions and agreements. If any new content deals are announced along with the Metro: Exodus delay, we’ll let you know.
How do you feel about the Metro: Exodus delay into 2019? Does this impact your fall gaming plans?
[Source: Game Informer]
