Due to ongoing industry consolidation and big acquisition spending sprees, many of the biggest game makers today are part of publicly traded corporations beholden to shareholders, which like to see aggressive release schedules and a near-constant cadence of big hits and reliable revenue streams. Game publishers are still incentivized to push for unrealistic release dates. But the delays we're seeing now seem less like ongoing reactions to COVID-19 and more like systemic inefficiencies in the video game release model, which remains stuck between the brick-and-mortar boxed product era and the games-as-a-service model that's been taking over for years now. Developers have had the last 18 months or so to adjust to the new reality of operating fully remote or in a hybrid setting during the pandemic. Unfortunately, this feels like the new normal for the game industry. A number of gaming publications now keep a running list of this year's delays, and it's grown long. Last week, there were four: Electronic Arts' EA Sports PGA Tour Take-Two's new Marvel game, Midnight Suns, from subsidiary Firaxis and two major setbacks for Blizzard Entertainment with Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 being pushed back indefinitely. Each week brings a new series of game delays.
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