Xbox One goes on sale with midnight launch

The battle between the next generation consoles kicked off in Ireland at midnight, as Microsoft’s Xbox One console went on sale.

Games stores staged special opening events to mark the occasion, allowing eager fans to get their hands on the much hyped console.

The tech giant is hoping that the new console, which aims to be a home entertainment hub rather than a straightforward games device, will capture the imagination of players and propel it ahead of rival Sony.

It goes on sale with a lineup of games that includes 10 exclusive titles, such as Forza Motorsport 5 and Ryse: Son of Rome, and 12 third party titles including Fifa 14, Call of Duty: Ghosts and Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.

The new console integrates an improved Kinect motion sensor into the console, bringing voice and gesture control to its interface. The new sensor is wide angle, allowing it to be used in a smaller room, with a HD camera that is more sensitive than its predecessor.

It’s the first time the two console makers have gone head to head at launch; last time out, the Xbox 360 went on sale on December 2nd 2005, with the Playstation 3 not hitting the market until March 2007.

Sony’s Playstation 4 will go on sale in Ireland next Friday. According to retailer Gamestop, preorders for Sony’s console have been stronger in Ireland than anywhere in the world, and was only beaten to the top spot for Xbox One preorders by Australia.

"GameStop has always known that the Irish fans are amongst the best in the world. We have thousands of pre-orders for both new consoles with some stretching back over a year," said Niall Lawlor, vice president of GameStop Northern Europe.

But bookmaker Paddy Power appeared to be backing Sony's console, cutting the odds that it would outsell the Microsoft offering to 1/9.

Microsoft's corporate vice president Phil Harrison said the company was pleased with the level of preorders for Xbox One, describing them as unprecedented.

At its official launch in May, the Xbox One was hit with some confusion over its policies on trading in games and how digital rights management would work on the console. Initial plans for the Xbox One gave users access to a digital library of their games, which would be tied to their Xbox Live account, but required users to “check in” via an internet connection on a regular basis to play games offline, and restricted the sharing of physical games discs between friends and family.

Microsoft reversed those policies in June, following criticism from consumers and confirmation from Sony that it would not be following a similar path.