It's always a difficult decision when you're a game publisher forced to consider the unpleasant prospect of delaying a game's release. Especially in the case of franchise titles. Established fanbases gather round to crow with anticipation about what's to come only to have their hopes dashed when the grim reality of waiting another bunch of months (if not more) sets in. Well "FEAR" fans, prepare yourselves... "FEAR 3" isn't hitting stores when you expected.
The latest entry in the horror-driven FPS franchise was originally supposed to come out late last year, but the release got pushed back to March 25. Now WBIE is delaying the game once more, so that some additional polish can be applied. And squash any issues with the game that they wouldn't want to talk about now.
There's certainly precedent for game release dates being pushed back and the end result likely benefiting from the added development time. One that immediately comes to mind is "Batman: Arkham Asylum" -- another WBIE game, incidentally -- which was supposed to have been a late-spring/early-summer 2009 release. It ended up hitting stores in August and, as anyone who has played it knows, proved to be one of the best games of the year and is largely thought to be the best "Batman" game ever made.
Little is known about the coming sequel, though it is confirmed that is will sport co-op play and a new cover system. I'd wager it'll be pretty scary too. You'll have to wait until May to find out for yourself, but take this as a good sign. More time doesn't guarantee a better game, but it can only help.
