Why the Heavy Rain Delay is Good

Heavy Rain was first revealed in 2006. However, the Playstation 3 exclusive game wouldn't be seen again until 2008. Many were impressed with Heavy Rain even though it still remains somewhat mysterious. While it was slated for a 2009 releases, the highly-anticipated Playstation 3 exclusive title has been delayed until 2010 due to fears of it being lost in the shuffle of the holiday season. Here are a few reasons why delaying Heavy Rain to 2010 is a good move for publisher Sony and developer Quantic Dream.

Adventure Genre
Heavy Rain is an adventure game. In the past, these titles have a hard time selling to the mass market, especially when LucasArts decided to stop developing their beloved games for the adventure genre.

Therefore, Heavy Rain is a niche title that appeals to a small segment of the market. Releasing the game in the holiday would not be a good idea as it is typically a time of year where the biggest and most popular shooting games are released. Unlike adventure titles, the shooting genre is currently the most popular in gaming.

New Intellectual Property
Heavy Rain would also have a hard time selling in the holiday season due to it being a new intellectual property. Historically only a few new franchises managed to fair well against the biggest releases from established brands. Unfortunately for Heavy Rain, the game doesn't have an immediate eye-catching appeal to it from the perspective of your typical mainstream gamer. Therefore, Heavy Rain would do better financially with a less crowded time in early 2010.

Bigger Install Base
By delaying the game into 2010, Sony and Quantic Dream also ensures that Heavy Rain would reach a bigger audience. This is because there will be millions more Playstation 3 in households. Sony has been heavily rumored to be cutting the price of the system in addition to introducing a more cost-effective model by the end of this year. All of this adds to a much bigger user base for Heavy Rain to sell to in 2010 than in the holiday season of 2009.

Extra Time for Polish
The delay to 2010 could also benefit the quality of Heavy Rain. The Playstation 3 exclusive game is a pretty ambitious project with many set pieces planned. While the game is coming along nicely, a few more months of polish wouldn't hurt it. Sony has already done this plenty of times with their first-party Playstation 3 titles. So while fans may be upset with the delay, they would easily forgive if it results in a better game.