Monster Hunter 4 delayed

Monster Hunter 4 has been delayed. Capcom announced today that the 3DS action game is no longer slated for release by March 2013, and is instead now tentatively scheduled for summer 2013.

Capcom said the decision to postpone Monster Hunter 4 was made on the basis that "further quality enhancements" would be needed to meet fan expectations.

"Capcom apologizes to all stakeholders and Monster Hunter fans who are anxiously awaiting this new game for this delay and asks for their understanding as development on this exciting title continues," the company said in a statement.

As a result of Monster Hunter 4's delay, along with "weakened" sales of Resident Evil 6, Capcom today slashed its full-year net income expectations by 33 percent. The company previously targeted net income of ¥9.8 billion ($1.6 billion) for the period, but is now anticipated to total ¥6.5 billion ($1 billion), or a drop of ¥3.3 billion ($529 million).

For more on Monster Hunter 4, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.