“Gravity Rush 2 is the conclusion of Kat’s journey, so we want players to have enough time to dive deep into her story,” director Keiichiro Toyama says on the PlayStation Blog. “In addition, as a lot of work went into online features that allow for asynchronous player interaction, we want as many people as possible playing the title at the same time.”
In other words, though the development team is taking extra time to make Gravity Rush 2 as polished as it can possibly be, Sony is concerned that the game would get lost in the holiday game release blitz that has become an expected part of the season. Another game originally scheduled to launch at the end of the year, South Park: The Fractured But Whole, was also recently pushed into 2017.
“I would like to apologize to all those players anxiously awaiting Gravity Rush 2,” Toyama adds. “After four years of development making a title we are very proud of, we want to release it at the very best time.”
The delay also comes with some good news, however. Narrative-focused DLC that Sony originally planned to release as paid content will now be available for free. Information on specifics, as well as the game’s accompanying film, will be released in the future.
The original Gravity Rush released in 2012 to very positive reviews, and the game then made its way to the PlayStation 4 as Gravity Rush Remastered last year (this year in North America). Protagonist Kat is also available as a playable character in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.
Gravity Rush 2 will now releases exclusively for the PlayStation 4 on January 20, 2017.
