Sony Computer Entertainment Japan (SCEJ) has announced its intention to postpone the release of the rabidly anticipated Gran Tursimo 5 racing simulator in the region for the period of one month.

The title was previously expected to release in Japan in March, but is now ‘To Be Decided.’

No specific reason for the delay was provided, but SCEJ has stated that a new release date for Gran Turismo 5 for Japan will be provided soon.

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), on the other hand, has assured fans of the series in Europe that this delay is only applicably to Japan, and that “SCEE will announce the launch date for this game in the PAL territories in due course.”

Late last year, head of all things Gran Turismo Kazunori Yamauchi revealed that Gran Turismo 5 had thus far cost $60 million to develop, a sum he didn’t consider all that much in the grand scheme of things.

This delay is sure to bump that cost up at least a bit, especially if the title releases in completely different windows around the world, resulting in mismatched marketing drives – a single marketing machine that starts and stops at the same time is (as far as I know, anyway) less costly than one that ebbs and flows.