25 to Life pushed back until 2006

The fourth-quarter release calendar just got one game lighter. This morning, the recently bought Eidos Interactive announced its controversial shooter, 25 to Life, has been delayed until 2006. The official reason for the delay was that the game was under "business review." It is the third high-profile game Eidos has delayed until next year since it was bought by SCi Games, following in the footsteps of Tomb Raider: Legend and Hitman: Blood Money, which were also supposed to be released this coming holiday season.

"Following the recent management change and restructure, Eidos is able to reevaluate its calendar of releases, giving us the opportunity to make changes in the best interest of the business," stated Bill Gardner. "It is in light of this review that we have decided to move the ship date for 25 to Life from October 2005 into next year."

Like another certain third-person shooter featuring criminals shooting it out with cops, 25 to Life has been the subject of controversy. Similar to Senator Hillary Clinton's outrage over Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, fellow Democratic New York Senator Charles Schumer leveled criticism at 25 to Life's portrayal of gangs shooting it out with police. "It makes Grand Theft Auto look like Romper Room," said Schumer.

For those interested in playing the PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 game, it has "strong infusion of street lifestyle elements including fashion and music," according to Eidos. Besides a "deep single-player mode," its gameplay sports a Battlefield-esque multiplayer mode that pits eight police officers against eight heavily armed criminals. GameSpot's previous coverage has more information on the game.