Virtuos, the studio porting The Outer Worlds to Nintendo Switch, is temporarily closed due to coronavirus outbreak.
The Outer Worlds, the spiritual successor to Fallout: New Vegas (in SPAAAAAAAAACE!) from Obsidian, released on PC, PS4 and Xbox One last year. It was met with mostly-widespread acclaim, with critics and fans alike enjoying the writing, setting, and characters. It’s also really short for a big RPG, which we think is ace!
An added bonus is that The Outer Worlds is also getting a Nintendo Switch release. Everyone loves Switch ports, but there’s something particularly pleasing about being able to play an RPG like this on the move.
The release date for The Outer Worlds on Switch was last week revealed as March 6, 2020. However, due to some extremely extenuating circumstances, publisher Private Division has announced that the Nintendo Switch release has been delayed.
“We’re delaying @OuterWorlds on Nintendo Switch,” reads the tweet, “due to the coronavirus impacting the Virtuos team working on the port, to provide them enough time to finish development. We’ll now be releasing the physical version on cartridge. Once we have a new launch date, we’ll let you know!”
Virtuos is a specialist game development outsourcing company that is well-known for its work on ports. It has 10 offices around the globe, including three in mainland China.
In an effort to restrict the spread of coronavirus in China, the government is, in some areas, implementing quarantines. If a workplace is instructed to it must close for the duration and – according to one source in the country – anyone who knowingly breaks these closure rules may be subject to criminal action.
That’s not to say that Virtuos is directly impacted by coronavirus itself. Private Division is keen to point out that “the team at Virtuos is OK, but their office has remained closed during this time.”
As a result of the delay, retail release of The Outer Worlds on Nintendo Switch – which was previously going to consist of a code in the boxed, retail package – will instead get a full cartridge release. We’d say that every cloud has a silver lining, but a video game release hardly seems to stack up against a global pandemic.
“We’re working with the team to determine an updated development timeline,” Private Division concludes, “and will share more regarding a new launch date shortly.”
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