Customers of the world's largest dedicated video game retailer were shocked today when an automated phone call went out declaring the cancellation of Team Ico's eagerly-anticipated PlayStation 3 exclusive The Last Guardian. Say it isn't so, Sony! Update: GameStop apologizes for the mistake.
While it is true that The Last Guardian creator Fumito Ueda recently vacated his position at the head of Sony's Team Ico, we've been told on several occasions that the move would in no way affect the development of the PlayStation 3 boy and his giant bird-thing game.
Yet now GameStop is telling customers the game has been cancelled. Indeed the game has been removed from the company's online website, and calls to two retail locations indicate it's no longer in their point-of-sale system either. Does GameStop know something we don't? Is the game canceled?
According to Sony's senior director of corporate communications, Patrick Seybold, the cancellation is not a real thing. "This is not true." It doesn't get much clearer than that.
So what gives, GameStop? I've reached out to the retailer for comment, and will update this post as soon as I receive a response. Until then, The Last Guardian is still a going concern; Sony says so.
Update: Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida is also denying the game's cancellation via his Twitter account.
Update 2: GameStop sent Kotaku the following statement regarding the suggested cancellation of The Last Guardian: "The Last Guardian has not been cancelled by Sony as we incorrectly stated in an automated call to reservation customers. Because the game did not have a specific release date, GameStop made the decision to remove the game from our system. The Last Guardian will be reinstated for pre-order when a firm launch date is known."
Everybody relax; all is well.