PlayStation 5 launch creates Xbox head-to-head

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Sony's eagerly awaited PlayStation 5 will launch in November, establishing a holiday-season battle with rival console Xbox Series X as the gaming industry thrives through the pandemic.

The competing consoles will be released within two days of one another ahead of the Christmas rush, both aiming to capitalise on a rare bright spot in the economic carnage due to the coronavirus crisis.

In addition to a $500 premium version of the PS5, a $400 "digital edition" without disk drive has also been made to harness the growing popularity of downloading games from the cloud.

Both continue sale from November 12 in Australia, THE UNITED STATES, New Zealand, Mexico, Japan and South Korea, becoming available elsewhere a week later, japan firm said on Sept 16.

Microsoft the other day announced its next-gen Xbox Series X will launch on Nov 10.

The estimated starting price is around the same as the entire PS5, while a slimmed-down console, the Xbox Series S, may also continue sale for $299 later that month.

The PS4 has outsold the Xbox One by a lot more than two to one, and Sony is hoping new games including "Final Fantasy XVI", "Hogwarts Legacy" and "Spider-Man Morales" can help it stay static in the lead.

Some of the new games will be exclusive to the PS5, giving Sony a solid advantage in the battle, said Amir Anvarzadeh, a strategist at Asymmetric Advisors in Singapore.

"PS5 will have a big edge since it always does, because in Europe PlayStation dominates, Xbox is always far behind," he told AFP. "But also for PS5 games to market, you will need the hardware to market."

In announcing its new console -- a dark tower encased by white sides -- Sony boasted of the machine's capabilities.

"We can't wait for our fans to experience for themselves the incredible speed, the heightened immersion and the breathtaking games," Interactive Entertainment chief Jim Ryan said.

Gaming companies have observed rising revenues and an explosion popular as persons seek distraction during virus lockdowns.

In line with the NPD Group, consumer shelling out for video-gaming in america reached a record $11.6 billion in the April-June quarter, up almost a third from the same period this past year.

Sony sales in its video-game sector were up 32.5 percent in the first fiscal quarter of 2020-21.

And Microsoft said in July that earnings had risen 13 percent to $38 billion, led by strong gains in its cloud computing and its own Xbox gaming services.

But Anvarzadeh warned that the recent highs, including Nintendo's runaway success with "Animal Crossing", wouldn't normally last.

"Nintendo's going to have (the same as) three Christmas quarters in a single year, which is unusual," he said. "The pandemic caused an excellent distortion of the market which we don't believe will repeat itself. So each one of these developers and platform-holders will be very challenged next year, at least from a rise viewpoint." 
Source: https://japantoday.com

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