Anyone who has worked on a project—from a work of art, to writing a story or a program, or filming and editing a movie—knows the frustrations of trying to build and perfect their vision, and any college student knows the stress experienced from deadlines. But at the same time, as a consumer of a variety of art mediums, such as movies, books, video games, and other forms of entertainment, it’s easy to get frustrated or even angry when there is a delay for a release date. Many can assume that these delays will guarantee a better product, but when are such delays justified and when are they simply unacceptable?
Most delays tend to range around a few months, but some can be as short as a few days or as long as several years. Sometimes they happen because of a mistake in production. Other reasons include the project simply being behind schedule or requiring more resources than the people working on it initially anticipated. For some fans, delays are worth the wait, but for others, it is simply maddening.
Some of these projects spanning years apart include comic series like “Captain America: White,” with its first volume releasing in Sep. 2008 and its second volume not releasing until Nov. 2015. According to Gizmodo, there was a mysterious seven-year gap until the series finally began to release sequential volumes on a regular schedule.
Additionally, one of the most infamous video game delays involves the game “Duke Nukem Forever.” According to VentureBeat, it was announced in Apr. 1997 but was not released worldwide until Jun. 10, 2011. The game suffered several delays until its original development team went bankrupt. The game was passed to multiple teams until it was finally released over a decade later, only to receive harsh criticism.
Other recent games have fallen under similar circumstances, with the crowdfunded “Mighty No. 9” being delayed three times from spring 2015 to summer 2016 as reported by its developer, Comcept. The game was universally panned at release. Its handheld versions on Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita remain unreleased, likely due to the game’s harsh criticism. “The Last Guardian” was another highly anticipated game announced in 2009 to be released in 2011 for the PlayStation 3, only to disappear for several years due to technical issues. It finally released in Dec. 2016 for PlayStation 4, but received only lukewarm reception after years of development.
So, do all delays inevitably release bad or mediocre products despite their endeavors of realizing a perfect vision? And do they all suffer downright ridiculous wait times? Not necessarily.
Despite the frustration of waiting, many of the most famous works of art have been brought into the forms we know them as today because of their delays. According to ShortList, James Cameron’s “Titanic” was delayed from Jul. 2, 1997 to Dec. 14, 1997 due to complications with the staff and being unable to finish the special effects in time. But today, it’s known as one of the world’s highest grossing films of all time.
Even one of the Harry Potter film adaptations, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” was delayed by more than half a year from Nov. 21, 2008 to Jul. 15, 2009, according to The Guardian. However, it still received great positive reception despite the backlash from fans for the delay.
Nintendo’s “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” was also delayed numerous times, having begun development around 1995 aiming for a 1997 release. According to Kotaku, it was delayed until Nov. 23, 1998 in America. The game has since been critically acclaimed and proclaimed by many as one of the best video games of all time. This is still said today with its numerous perfect scores it has been given and the game has also been appraised for many of the revolutions that it brought to the industry.
Even today, one of the game’s successors, “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” deals with a similar fate as it has received numerous delays since its first slated release schedule of 2015. Although, according to Kotaku, it has only recently received a final date of Mar. 3, 2017. Whether it will succeed as well as its past predecessor, however, is a question that currently remains unanswered.
There are many examples of multimedia projects that still do not meet expectations despite their delays. Sometimes, projects even suffer delays that feel unacceptable for many, even lasting years. But there also still lies many great works of art that suffer delays, but ultimately become known as some of the best of their kind. Whether or not a delay is worth the wait is subjective, but the quality of a good still remains with it years down the line.
“A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is bad forever,” stated creator of “Super Mario Bros” and “The Legend of Zelda” franchises, Shigeru Miyamoto. Miyamoto is fondly remembered for this quote he made in regards to the delay of “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time,” and it has echoed throughout the gaming industry for years.
While the case for delayed products may not always be true, rushed mediums have a consistent history of ranging from mediocre to disastrous. An example of this is the infamous game “Sonic the Hedgehog” that was quickly “finished” for the 2006 holiday season.
Despite the fact that delays may be frustrating and may not always guarantee greatness, perhaps delays are for the best in order to avoid rushed works. The hope is that they may have a greater chance of bringing the world and its consumers new masterpieces to look back on years later.
