Xbox One Asia launch set for late 2014, no word on Japan
Microsoft's next-generation game console is slated for a late 2013 launch in the U.S., but gamers in Asia will have to wait.
Microsoft's Xbox One might be making a splash at the E3 Gaming expo this week, but it won't be making a splash in Asia until later next year.
The Xbox One won't launch in Asia until late 2014, Microsoft confirmed to The Wall Street Journal in an article published Tuesday. Microsoft's regional vice president of sales and marketing in Asia told the Journal that his company is following a "staged approach," noting that Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and India will be first ones in Asia to get the console next year.
Interestingly, Microsoft has yet to say what it has planned for Japan. Over the years, Japan has been an exceedingly tough market for the Xbox, and sales have proven sluggish. It's not clear how Microsoft hopes to change the fate of the Xbox One in Japan.
Still, gamers who live in Asian countries won't be too happy to hear that they'll need to wait over a year to get their hands on the Xbox One. Microsoft has already said that the Xbox One will launch in the U.S. later this year for $499.