This seems to be the time of year when developers and publishers shrug off their rose-colored glasses and take a more practical look at their current projects. Last week saw Bioshock Infinite moved back four months to late February, then on Monday we saw the Tomb Raider reboot delayed to early 2013, and as of yesterday afternoon THQ and Obsidian’s new South Park game will be joining them in next year’s first quarter.

THQ revealed the delay of the tentatively-named South Park: The Game (rumored to be South Park: The Stick of Truth based on leaked art) in passing as part of an investor report released yesterday. The publisher gave no official reason for the delay, but its net loss of $239.9 million for the recent fiscal period and subsequent layoffs of approximately 30 employees (including a few working on the new South Park game) is widely believed to be the reason behind the delay.

It’s also possible that this and other projects’ recent delays were actually calculated to move them out of the crowded holiday season and into a usually quiet Q1 release period. In any event, we can only hope that extra development time will do these projects good.