The UK release of MotorStorm: Apocalypse has been postponed following Japan’s earthquake and tsunami disaster last Friday, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) has confirmed.
The off-road racer was originally pencilled in for release on March 18, and follows yesterday’s news that the Evolution Studios-developed sequel has also be pushed back in Japan.
No new date has been set as of yet, though speaking in a statement issued today, SCEE said it is monitoring the situation closely, and is acutely aware of “the parallels between these events and the underlying theme in Motorstorm.”
Said the platform holder: "Although we have shipped the game into the channel last week, given that we are able to do so, we have chosen to postpone the launch in the UK. In the meantime we will continue to monitor the situation very closely.”
"We are shocked and saddened to see the impact of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and our thoughts are with all those affected, including our colleagues within the Sony family, living and working throughout Japan.”
"We are very conscious of the parallels between these events and the underlying theme in Motorstorm and are doing everything we can to be as sensitive as possible to the situation. Although the game itself is already in distribution, we are ceasing any further shipments and removing as much of the marketing materials as possible."
UK gamers can put forward donations to the on-going relief effort via the British Red Cross website here.