Konami delays MGS4 to Q2 '08

Ever since the trailer blew people away at the Tokyo Game Show 2005, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots has been eagerly awaited by many. Unfortunately, those people are going to have to wait a little bit longer while Konami puts the final touches on the game.

According to Japanese- and English-language press releases on the Konami Web site, the game will now be coming to Japan in the first quarter of 2008, and to other regions in the second quarter. [UPDATE] However, Konami has since told GameSpot that the English press release was wrong, and the game will ship worldwide in Q2 2008.

Metal Gear Solid 4 had initially been due for a simultaneous worldwide pre-Christmas release exclusively for Sony's PlayStation 3 console. However, at the E3 Media & Business Summit in July, Konami admitted that the game would not arrive in 2007 as originally planned.

A statement from Konami gives the reasoning behind this decision: "Konami has decided to delay the title's release in order to make further improvements to the quality of the game and provide even greater enjoyment for more customers worldwide." It added that it would continue to work on the game to make sure it will "meet everyone's expectations."