First Watch Dogs, now PlayStation 4-exclusive Driveclub?
My condolences to PlayStation 4 race buffs: Sony just confirmed a rumor that we wouldn’t see Evolution Studios’ road-racer Driveclub until early next year. Sony Computer Entertainment honcho Shuhei Yoshida said both Driveclub and the Driveclub PlayStation Plus edition won’t arrive “until early 2014.”
“DRIVECLUB will be a truly innovative, socially connected racing game, but the team requires more time in order to deliver on their vision — and I’m fully confident the game will surpass your expectations,” wrote Yoshida.
Sounds like the company’s going to swap in puzzle/platformer Contrast for PlayStation Plus members at launch, then deliver Driveclub to members when it arrives.
Here’s Yoshida:
This decision also affects PlayStation Plus members’ Instant Game Collection for launch. To be clear, DRIVECLUB PlayStation Plus Edition will still be part of the Instant Game Collection when it is released. For the PS4 launch, in addition to Resogun, I’m pleased to announce that Contrast, the highly anticipated game from Compulsion Games will also be available to PlayStation Plus members for free as part of Instant Game Collection. If you’re not aware of Contrast, it will whisk you away to a surreal vaudevillian, film-noir inspired reality full of performance, intrigue, shadow-play and drama. Please check out the trailer below. I’m sure you’ll agree that it is unlike anything you will have played before.
Yoshida adds that the extra time given to polishing Driveclub “means the visuals and overall experience are only going to get better.”
The temptation would be to read these launch pushbacks as harbingers of something grim. Resist the temptation — launch delays happen every time a new generation arrives. By my tally, we’re still looking at a whopping 27 launch titles on PS4 and 22 on Xbox One.