NMA have a translated article with no link to a source that says that Metalheart has been delayed to the spring. It's apparently from Akella's Sergey Lakhtin, though some confirmation would be good, if anyone who's connected to the game is reading.
1. We cannot announce any exact release dates until the publisher
gives us the green light. We can only give an approximate estimation:
it's something like early spring 2005
2. The main reason for the delays is that we have to work remotely
with the main developing team situated in Germany. So we're both
vulnerable to many things including the connection problems that can
interfere our plans
3. We're not planning to publish any demo-version. The release is inevitably coming, so please be patient and wait for it.
I thought the game was due for a release in the spring anyway. But there you go.