The third installment of the smash hit Sims series is supposed to arrive in stores on February 20th but don't put in your vacation time just yet. It appear the game might miss that release date.

According to Edge Online, a number of retailers now list the game's release as "first half of 2009" rather than February 20th. Also, the official Sims 3 website now lists the release date as "TBA."

No reasons were provided for the delay when Edge contacted EA, though the rep did admit they were "evaluating the launch window". The February 20th release date was announced way back in August. It's possible that, after disappointing sales from other EA games like Dead Space and Mirror's Edge, EA wants to polish up Sims 3 (its proven cash-cow) as much as possible.