Electronic Arts has announced that The Godfather II has been delayed until the 2010 fiscal year.
According to EA CEO John Riccitiello, the decision behind the delay rests squarely on the desire to prolong the game’s marketing plans. The Redwood Shores title was originally planned for release in February.
Riccitiello conceded that EA was not too confident about The Godfather II’s success if released during the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year, which sees the release of several heavy hitters including F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, Street Fighter IV and Killzone 2.
"To be honest with you, we looked at the title, title feels very solid It will appeal to its audience well and it was likely to ship, as we had originally planned it, into a very cluttered, price reduced excess inventory channel both in North America and Europe in a heavy competitive environment. We didn’t think it would get its best shot at success in [fiscal] Q4,” he said.
Hopefully this marketing ploy works out for EA as they’ve done a fantastic job as of late in releasing titles with little to no issues. With any luck, the extra development time will result in a more refined product.