'Starfield' the latest game from Bethesda, has been delayed until "the first half of 2023".
The upcoming 'Redfall' from developers Arkane was also announced to be delayed until next year.
In a tweet on Thursday afternoon, Bethesda announced that the games were being delayed "to ensure that you receive the best, most polished versions of them."
“We want to thanks everyone for their excitement for Redfall and Starfield. That energy is a huge part of what inspires all of us every day and drives our own excitement for what we are creating," the statement read.
'Starfield' has been touted as Bethesda's next franchise in waiting, with anticipation for the game gradually building since it was first announced at E3 2018.
Players have seen scant footage of the game, but the Bethesda statement noted that the first deep dive gameplay for both 'Starfield' and 'Redfall' will be shared "soon."
'Starfield' has been touted as Bethesda's first new franchise since the 1990s, with all of the major studio creative personnel heavily involved in the project, with 'Fallout' and 'Skyrim' supremo Todd Howard serving as director on the project.
'Starfield' will be an Xbox and PC exclusive following Microsoft's buyout of Bethesda's parent company ZeniMax in 2020.
'Redfall' is the latest game from Arkane, the studio behind the 'Dishonoured' games and our game of the year for 2021, 'Deathloop'.
'Redfall' is a single-player and multiplayer game that takes place in a sleepy Massachusetts town that has been overrun by vampires, and players must take out the vampire forces haunting the town.
The game was set for release sometime this summer, but has also slipped in 2023.
Game delays have plagued gaming since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, with game developers having to accommodate their employees working from home and shortages of major consoles influencing publishers' decisions to hold off releasing games until consoles are more readily available.
