DICE today announced on the Mirror’s Edge Catalyst website that the game is receiving another release date delay. The delay is pushing the release date back a further two weeks, where its release is due in North America on June 7th, and in Europe on June 9th.
What is Mirror’s Edge Catalyst?
Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is an open world action-adventure platform game currently that is currently being developed by EA DICE and published by EA. Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is a reboot of the original Mirror’s Edge game that released in 2008 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, iOS and Windows Phone.
The player takes on the role of Faith Connors as she progresses through the futuristic city called Glass. The player will have to traverse the city using aspects of urban exploration and parkour movements to complete missions and combat enemies.
The plot to Mirror’s Edge Catalyst revolves around Faith’s origins and her attempt to overthrow a totalitarian conglomerate of corporations who rule the city of Glass.
The Second Delay
It is the second time Mirror’s Edge Catalyst has had its release date delayed. The game originally scheduled for release February 23rd, 2016, only to receive a delay leading its release to May 24th. As of today, it has received its second delay, pushing it further back to now, June 7th, in North America and June 9th, in Europe.
In the announcement design director Erik Odeldhal said:
To support the Social Play features, we are using a brand new online technology. We also want to make sure we have the opportunity and time to address player feedback from the Closed Beta. That is why we will give ourselves a bit more time to perfect the game, with a new release date for Mirror’s Edge Catalyst of June 7th (NA) and June 9th (EU). We’re confident that these extra two weeks will make sure the game is as amazing as possible for you the players.
The Closed Beta for the game starts tomorrow and is looking to test the games new online-connected social play features. Social Play is the name DICE uses to reference several online multiplayer features related to the game. These features include Time Trails, leader boards and more.
A promising approach
Indeed, yet another delay to a highly anticipated game is very frustrating. Never the less, with Social Play being a brand new technology solely developed by DICE themselves, it is a clever move to ensure it is working perfectly for release.
The idea of the Closed Beta is to find any issues with Social Play that may be present and to fix them before the release of the game. Giving themselves an extra two weeks to fix any issues is indeed a promising approach.
Despite the frustration it brings, it shows DICE is attempting to bring the best experience possible for release. That alone is enough to justify the delays as it is far better than receiving a rushed and buggy game, something that happens too often already in the industry.
What are your thoughts on Mirror’s Edge Catalyst? Do you think the two-week delay is a sign of promise? Let me know in the comments below.
