The gaming community has tried to stay optimistic, but there's no doubt that the messy split between Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima and Konami could cause some problems for upcoming installment in the espionage franchise. The game is enormous and aims to deliver dozens of hours of action in the core campaign, along with a robust online experience. Although the core game hasn't suffered from any serious delays yet, it sounds like Metal Gear Online may not be ready to launch with the rest of the game's features on day one this September.

Launching companion online components to games with massive campaigns has historically been a rocky road. It took weeks to get GTA5 Online up and running and months to get it stocked with all of the features promised at launch. Although Metal Gear Online won't feature an open world that requires as much maintenance as GTA5 Online's, the game's online component is still suffering from some last minute problems.

Metal Gear Online, which supports up to 16 players on current gen machines, will not arrive until October 6 on consoles and January 2016 for PC. The change in dates is apparently the result of moving the PC version's release date up to September. The change in release date from the PC version comes in response to outcries from the PC community to deliver the game earlier.

Metal Gear Solid Online Reveal Game Awards

Although it's great news that PC gamers will be able to join in the fun earlier than expected, it is disappointing that the game will launch without the online support. The community would definitely rather see Metal Gear Online arrive late than arrive broken, so the delay is hopefully saving us from headaches in the long run. With the early release date for the PC version, the gaming community has got to be hoping that Konami doesn't deliver an experience similar to Batman: Arkham Knight.

Maintaining the goodwill of Metal Gear fans all depends on Metal Gear Online offering a very smooth online experience come October and January. If the launch resembles that of Halo: The Master Chief Collection or GTA Online or if another delay is announced next month, then Konami may start to lose the support of its usual loyal fans. Hopefully, the online tactical team features arrive in good shape and are well worth the wait.

Are you disappointed that Metal Gear Online won't be ready at launch or do you think that the game's campaign will keep you busy enough for the first month? Let us know in the comments.

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is scheduled for release on September 1, 2015 for the PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4.

Source: VG 24/7