Super Mega Baseball 2, the sequel to Polygon's sports video game of the year for 2014, is delayed into 2018, developer Metalhead Software announced yesterday.

Scott Drader, Metalhead's founder and lead developer, postponed Super Mega Baseball 2's launch to refine its gameplay, introduce some additional nice-to-have details and launch it at a time when the Major League Baseball season is beginning. Super Mega Baseball 2's original launch, for PlayStation 4, Windows PC and Xbox One, was scheduled for September, when MLB's regular season is winding up in dramatic races for postseason berths.

"We're not quite feeling that the game is where it needs to be at," Drader says in the video below. He notes that the game could still be launched in December, as Super Mega Baseball was in 2014, but creating enthusiasm for a sport out of season is "not a battle we want to fight again."

The extra time means Metalhead Software can shore up the game’s design and implement some other features that wouldn't have made the cut for a September release. That includes things like defensive shifts and additional artwork, Drader said. Also, the delay means Super Mega Baseball 2 will have a public beta test, and time to adapt the final product to the feedback it receives.

Super Mega Baseball 2 will feature online multiplayer gameplay; its absence in the first Super Mega Baseball was a glaring disappointment for a game that was otherwise the caliber of arcade sports legends such as NBA Jam or Mutant League Football. The players in Super Mega Baseball 2 will also be more realistically proportioned and styled, as opposed to the cartoony avatars of the first game.

For more on Super Mega Baseball 2, see Polygon's interview with Drader from PAX West 2016.