Since my day job has me working in communications and public relations, I’ve developed an appreciation for the finer aspects of the craft, including the ability to “massage” the message. Which brings me to Sega, and their recent announcement about the status of the much-anticipated Sonic the Hedgehog 4. The release includes the following:

SEGA® is incredibly happy at the overwhelmingly positive response to Sonic The Hedgehog™ 4 Episode I from both press and fans around the world. SEGA wants to ensure that we’re delivering the best Sonic experience possible.

With this dedication to quality and the Sonic experience in mind, SEGA has decided to extend the development of the game and will now release Sonic The Hedgehog™ 4 Episode I in the latter half of 2010. The additional time will allow the Development Team to focus on keeping the game high quality, continuing tuning and balancing of levels and interface and overall maintaining the kind of polish that an important game like this demands, ultimately providing fans with an unrivaled classic Sonic feel.

Yes, that’s right, they are seemingly happy to announce that the game will be delayed from its previously announced launch window. Delighted in fact, because they are doing it for you, the consumer. With the hope that the finished product will live up the high standards that Sonic games haven’t lived up to in many, many years. That, ladies and gentlemen, is public relations at its finest.

I was so impressed with the artistry of the announcement, I almost forgot to be disappointed that the game is going to be delayed. Which is too bad for the obvious reasons, but maybe it’s a good thing if it means Sonic FINALLY gets the high-quality game he deserves. One without werewolves or Black Knights or any of the other “additions” that have plagued the franchise in recent years, and just gets back to what made Sonic great in the first place. As someone who fell in love instantly with the original Sonic back in the days of the Sega Genesis, that quality is something that I very much want to experience this fall. Or maybe later, if the developers are excited to take even more time to work on the game.