One of the most-anticipated first party exclusives for Sony's next-generation console, inFamous: Second Son enjoyed a strong showing at E3 2013. Expanding on the footage shown in the Second Son gameplay trailer, we had a chance to preview some of the new game mechanics - not to mention the near-photorealistic visuals - of Sucker Punch's third console installment in the inFamous series.
While the project was initially believed to be a PS4 launch title, alongside other exclusives like Killzone: Shadow Fall, Knack, and DriveClub; however, subsequent reports suggested that the game would, instead, arrive during Q1 of 2014 - with certain insiders suggesting a February launch window. Now, a new (albeit unofficial) GameStop listing seems to indicate that Sucker Punch is still on track for a Q1 window.
Take the following report with a major grain of salt - especially until we hear official word from Sucker Punch and/or Sony - since retail pre-order pages are not always the most reliable source for release dates. However, only a few short weeks ago, the GameStop pre-order page was sporting a much earlier date (12/31/2013) - meaning that the retailer has adjusted the placeholder date for inFamous: Second Son to reflect the promised release window.
Check out a screen grab of the GameStop page below or check out the actual listing - HERE:
At this point, it's unclear whether GameStop changed the page after receiving an official date from Sony (one that has yet to be announced to the public) or because they merely wanted to differentiate the game from the launch library - which are currently sporting 12/31/2013 dates (ahead of the inevitable PS4 launch date reveal). It's easy to imagine that seeing a Q4 2013 date on Second Son probably led some potential customers to assume the game was also a launch title - in which case GameStop would have good reason to update their listing with more accurate information.
Still, as mentioned, while retail pages placeholders are commonplace (and can just as easily change again), it's also possible that GameStop has received updated details and/or assets from Sony - meaning that not only is the game still on target for a Q1 release, an official announcement could be coming in the not-too-distant future.
Of course, it's also possible that the GameStop date is the actual release date, not just a placeholder - since the choice of 04/01/2014 breaks with the established placeholder format: All PS4 launch games were branded with a 12/31/2013 date - not 01/01/2014 - by comparison April 1st would be the first day of Q2, not the last day of Q1. Additionally, April 1st is a Tuesday, the normal day of the week for new game releases, not to mention that both prior inFamous titles released in Q2 (May 26, 2009 and June 7, 2011, respectively). Sony might have decided to hold-off a couple extra months to deliver the game during a time of year where prior entries have performed well (possibly on April 1st this time).
Other retailers (such as Amazon) have yet to update their inFamous: Second Son listings - still showing 12/31/2013 dates - so it's too early to say anything definitive about GameStop's pre-order page. Most likely, the April 1st date is just a placeholder, but plenty of release dates have been outed by hasty retailer pages, so there's also good reason to think that we'll be seeing inFamous: Second Son closer to that April date than earlier reports of February might have suggested.
We'll be sure to update our readers when we hear something official from Sucker Punch or Sony.
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inFamous: Second Son is currently in development for PS4.
Follow me on Twitter @benkendrick for more on inFamous: Second Son as well as future movie, TV, and gaming news.