[UPDATE] Amazon and GameStop have issued statements about
what the Watch Dogs delay means for people who have preordered the game
and/or a console bundle.
"For those of you who pre-order
the Watch Dogs PlayStation 4 bundle—don't worry—you will still be
getting your Playstation 4 (without Watch Dogs) based on your current
delivery estimate. We are adjusting the orders now and will update you
once we know more," Amazon
said.
Meanwhile, a GameStop representative provided a statement to
IGN on the matter.
"With
the news that Ubisoft has delayed the release of the highly-anticipated
title Watch Dogs until next year, GameStop is contacting customers who
had reserved PlayStation 4 and Xbox One bundles featuring the game.
Customers can elect to keep their current bundle orders and their
consoles will ship as scheduled with the game shipping separately once
it is available or customers can choose another bundle to replace their
current order. Customers should also note that there may be a difference
in the price if selecting another bundle and that all reserved orders
will be charged upon shipment."
The original story is below.
Ubisoft's next-generation open-world game
Watch Dogs
has been delayed to spring 2014. The game was previously scheduled to
launch in November for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4,
PC, and Wii U.
"Our ambition from the start with Watch
Dogs has been to deliver something that embodies what we wanted to see
in the next-generation of gaming," Ubisoft said in a statement. "It is
with this in mind that we've made the tough decision to delay the
release until spring 2014."
"We know a lot of you are
probably wondering: Why now? We struggled with whether we would delay
the game. But from the beginning, we have adopted the attitude that we
will not compromise on quality," the developer added. "As we got closer
to release, as all the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place in
our last push before completion, it became clear to us that we needed to
take the extra time to polish and fine tune each detail so we can
deliver a truly memorable and exceptional experience."
Sony previously announced a
special Watch Dogs PS4 bundle
for the United Kingdom. With the game now delayed into 2014, an Ubisoft
representative told GameSpot, "Our partnership with Sony remains strong
and we will have more details to share about the specific benefits of
this partnership for PlayStation customers at a later date."
Regarding
North America, the Ubisoft representative told GameSpot, "If you have
pre-ordered a Watch Dogs bundle in North America please contact your
retailer for your options."
Ubisoft also delayed racing game
The Crew
today, pushing that title to sometime in the company's upcoming
financial year. This means the earliest the game could be released is
April 1, 2014.
"Our long-term goal is to win the next
generation. The tough decisions we are taking today to fully realize the
major potential of our new creations have an impact on our short-term
performance," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said in a statement. "We are
convinced that, longer term, they will prove to be the right decisions
both in terms of satisfaction for our fans and in terms of value
creation for our shareholders. We are building franchises that will
become perennial pillars of Ubisoft's financial performance. In a
context of growing successes for mega-blockbusters, the additional time
given to the development of our titles will allow them to fulfill their
huge ambitions and thus offer players even more exceptional
experiences."
As a result of the two game delays, Ubisoft
has lowered overall company sales targets for the year. The publisher
is now expecting between €995 million and €1,045 million in sales for
the year, compared to prior targets of sales between €1,420 million and
€1,450 million.
