TOKYO: Sony’s PlayStation 5 went on sale Thursday, just two days after rival Microsoft released its newest Xbox, with the next-generation consoles vying for holiday season dominance as the pandemic boosts gaming demand.
While the new Xbox hit shelves worldwide on Tuesday, the PS5 is available from Thursday in Australia, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, North America and South Korea, but gamers elsewhere will have to wait until Nov 19. Jonathan De Botton, one customer, said the atmosphere was a world away from the PS4 launch, when lines of customers stretched into a shopping mall food court.“It was a midnight launch … It was a good time,” he added.The consoles go on sale with the pandemic creating a massive spike in demand for gaming from people stuck at home and looking for a distraction or a way to pass the time.
And it will be relying heavily on the US market to achieve that, with Japan’s video game market more focused on mobile and still dominated by Nintendo, said Serkan Toto, an analyst at Kantan Games.