25 to Life locked up until October

Yesterday, news sprung that Eidos would likely be delaying two high-profile games until 2006. Various product listings subtly slipped in a 2006 release date for Tomb Raider: Legend and Hitman: Blood Money, originally both scheduled to hit the market in this year's fourth quarter.

Now it appears another of Eidos' top games is going to take a little extra time to cook. 25 to Life, an urban combat game that lets gamers pick which side of the law to take, has been delayed from an August release date to an October one.

The delay was revealed on the company's Web site, which lists all three versions (PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC) of the third-person cap-buster as shipping in October. When contacted by GameSpot, an Eidos representative confirmed that the game has been delayed but could not get any more specific than "October."

In 25 to Life, gamers can play as either gangstas or law enforcement officials. The game is a digital version of the school yard classic cops and robbers, pitting the two sides against each other. Gang members try to both engage in criminal activities and avoid the fuzz, while the cops try to uphold the law by incarcerating the ruffians. Each side is balanced with team-specific advantages. For example, the police have helicopters that can track hoodlums on the lam, while gangsters have neighborhood watchmen who alert them of danger.

25 to Life has been on the receiving end of some political lambasting recently. Just last month, New York Senator Charles E. Schumer criticized the game for gratuitous cop killing and said it makes the heavily scoffed Grand Theft Auto III "look like Romper Room," in addition to teaching children to kill cops. The flaming caused CNN personality Nancy Grace to join the fray, reiterating Schumer's plea for retailers to not sell the game when it is released, saying that the objective of the game was "to kill cops."

25 to Life is rated M for Mature and currently has an SRP of $39.99. For more information on the game, head over to GameSpot's previous coverage.