14 DAY TRIAL // Video game hardware maker and publisher Microsoft and BesTV announce that they will launch the Xbox One home console on the Chinese market on September 23 of this year, for the price of 3,699 RMB, which is the equivalent of 599 dollars or Euro.
The two companies are saying that there are 25 developers who are at the moment working to offer 70 titles on launch, and the partnership also means that hundreds of hours of entertainment will be offered for the next-generation platform.
All buyers get access to Neverwinter Online and to a Gold subscription to Xbox Live, which is active until March 2015, giving buyers some extra value.
Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice-president of marketing at the Devices and Studios division of Microsoft, states in the official announcement that “We’re honored that Xbox One is the first console approved for sale in China through the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. We’re dedicated to earning millions of fans in China by working with BesTV to deliver an all in one games and entertainment experience starting September 23.”
Zhang Dazhong, the senior vice president of Shanghai Media Group and chairman of the board at E-Home Entertainment, adds, “We’ve been working together with Microsoft for more than a year to prepare for the launch of Xbox One and our organizations share a vision for bringing entertainment and gaming innovation to our consumers.”
Neverwinter Online from Perfect World and other games from Gamebar and Yingpei Games are the exclusive titles that will be offered on launch for the Xbox One in China.
All the exclusives that the platform launched with in Europe and the United States are also being offered, and it seems that Microsoft will also organize simultaneous launches for upcoming titles like Sunset Overdrive and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
The BesTV partnership also means that all Xbox One buyers in China will get exclusive free access for one year to matches from the English Premier League.
Applications like Tencent’s QQ Music, Douban FM, GameFY and Karaoke Master are also offered.
Microsoft is also launching two new innovation centers in China and is delivering a local version of the ID@Xbox program in order to allow indie developers to get their titles on the Xbox One in the coming years.
Sony has also announced plans to launch the PlayStation 4 on the Chinese market, but no date or price has been revealed yet.