The official site for SimCity let us know that Maxis is moving the launch of SimCity 4 and The Sims for the PS2 to January 2003. Here is the scoop:

We know you're looking forward to both games and that this might be a disappointment. You should know that both titles are looking great and are a blast to play. Moving them to the beginning of next year will give us the opportunity to do a little extra fine-tuning and polishing of the games. We'll also be revamping SimCity.com and posting the most up to date information regarding both games on our websites. Thanks for your continued support and be sure to visit TheSims.com and SimCity.com for the latest details.