The outbreak of the coronavirus has led to The Outer Worlds being delayed on Nintendo Switch, as the studio that is handling the port is based in China. The novel coronavirus is currently front-page news across the world, as over twenty-five thousand cases of infection have been confirmed in China, causing over five hundred fatalities as of the time of writing.
There are many businesses that have been shut down in China as part of various quarantines imposed by the government. It has been confirmed that Nintendo Switch shipments will be delayed due to the coronavirus, as the console is mostly produced in China. It remains to be seen how long these quarantines will continue for and how long these businesses will be shut down, especially as there is currently no treatment for the coronavirus.
It was recently revealed that The Outer Worlds was coming to Switch in March, but publisher Private Division has now delayed the release date. The Private Division Twitter account has posted an update, explaining that the Switch port of The Outer Worlds was being handled by a studio called Virtuos and their team in China was working on the project. A comment on the update confirmed that the team is okay, but their building has been shut down as part of the ongoing epidemic. Private Division has now had to revise the release date for The Outer Worlds and says that it will be revealed shortly.
The tweet has also announced that The Outer Worlds is receiving a physical version on the Switch. It had previously been announced that The Outer Worlds won't have a physical Switch cartridge and would just be a code in a box. It's possible that the reason for this was due to time constraints and that this new delay will allow the creators involved to have enough time for cartridges to be produced, although this theory has yet to be confirmed.
The Outer Worlds was one of the best games of 2019 and it's going to be even better when it's playable on a portable system. It's a shame that Switch gamers will have to wait a little longer to enjoy the game, but it's understandable considering the current dangerous circumstances. Players and fans can only hope that the Virtuos team is well and that the coronavirus epidemic ends as soon as possible.
The Outer Worlds is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The game will be coming to Nintendo Switch in the future.
Source: Twitter