As the world deals with the lockdown effects of the ongoing pandemic, gamers' attentions turn to the launch dates of the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Could challenging working conditions cause delays for their releases?
While Sony and Microsoft have both assured that everything is on track, Ubisoft has stated that it's prepared to tweak its release calendar should disaster strike.
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Speaking to The New York Times, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot discussed how its next slate of AAA games such as Watch Dogs: Legion and Gods and Monsters could potentially be affected.
"We are not seeing significant impact to our own timelines, but we are in touch with all our partners and if there’s a need to adjust in order to do what’s best for them and for our players, we will do so," Guillemot explained.
Delays are already starting
Both Sony and Microsoft have eased the remote working difficulties of its key third party developers by allowing them to take precious secret dev kits home to work on – an unusual but necessary step as these are closely guarded in developer offices in traditional times.
But development has slowed for many teams, and there's the suggestion that some companies are not keen to launch a title during the pandemic, when supply chain issues could arise and people are considering mostly essential purchases rather than 'luxuries' like games.
The Last of Us Part II has already experienced a delay, as has Iron Man VR and Death Stranding for PC, while Sony has been very quiet on news of the apparently-impending release of Ghost of Tsushima. It'd be a very awkward console launch for both Sony and Microsoft if the consoles hit stores without games to go with them.
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