It will be interesting to see, in general, how digital distribution may (or may not) change publishers' approach for release dates.

Yeah, normally no publisher would ever push a big mid-summer release, sales are too slow over the summer and most game sales accumulate pretty quickly after a game's release date.

But with digital distribution, you don't have to worry about projecting sales at retail, and in principle, folks can go online whenever to buy the game. I'm guessing that the release date is still a hugely important factor, though.

(Personally, I HATE the fact that gamers just don't go out and buy games whenever they are released, regardless of whether it is over the holidays or the summer. It makes for such clumped game releases in the fall and then in the spring :/)