Xbox Goes Global With European
and Australian Launches
Microsoft’s Video Game System
Lands at Retailers Across Europe, Australia
LONDON — March 14, 2002 — Microsoft
Corp. today announced that the future-generation Xbox™ video game system has
landed in Europe and Australia. With Xbox already on store shelves in the United
States, Canada and Japan, it’s time for the Xbox generation in Europe and
Australia to get a taste of the superior graphics and amazing games that Xbox
has to offer.
With the best graphics, sound and
game experiences, Xbox is the most powerful video game system available. It has
been launched with much fanfare and excitement in every market.
“We have enjoyed successful launches
in North America and Japan, and we’re excited to bring the future of video games
to Europe and Australia,” said Robbie Bach, chief Xbox officer (CXO) at
Microsoft. “It’s all about the games, and the power of Xbox means that games are
more realistic, bigger, more innovative and closer to the original vision of the
developer.”
Xbox is on sale for an estimated
price of $649 (Australian), including GST, in more than 700 Australian stores,
and ç479/299 (actual retail prices may vary) at thousands of retail outlets in
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy,
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United
Kingdom.
After going on sale in North America
in November, Xbox and many Xbox games already have garnered some of the most
prestigious awards in the video game industry. These award-winning games, as
well as new European-centric titles, are available at launch throughout Europe
and Australia.
“There is already tremendous buzz
and anticipation for our launch titles in Europe,” said Sandy Duncan, vice
president of the Xbox Division at Microsoft Europe. “Gamers can’t wait to get
their hands on such blockbuster Xbox games as ‘Halo™,’ ‘Dead or Alive 3’ and
‘RalliSport Challenge,’ a fantastic racing game developed specifically for the
European market.”
The launch day lineup includes U.S.
best-sellers “Halo™,” “Project Gotham Racing™” and “Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee”
(from Microsoft® Game Studios) as well as third-party titles such as “Dead or
Alive 3” (Tecmo), “Jet Set Radio Future” (Sega) and “Wreckless: The Yakuza
Missions™” (Activision), all of which are exclusive to the Xbox platform.
A total of 20 games are available
today, and a total of 60 titles are scheduled to be available by the end of
June. Many more are in development from some of the world’s best game publishers
and developers, including Electronic Arts, Infogrames, Sega, Codemasters, Eidos,
Ubi Soft, Activision and Konami.
“Xbox is a welcome addition to
European video game culture,” said David Gardner, European general manager and
senior vice president at Electronic Arts. “It’s a terrific system that offers
new levels of graphics, gameplay and fun. I’ve already played a few titles on
Xbox, and I think European gamers are going to love this new video game system.
“EA games such as ‘FIFA World Cup
2002’ look and play great on Xbox,” Gardner said. “In the next few months you’ll
see several more titles from EA including ‘NBA Live’ and ‘NHL 2002’ and, later
in the year, ‘James Bond, Agent Under Fire.’”
“Microsoft has been a great partner
to work with,” said Scott Dodkins, senior vice president at Activision European
Publishing. “It has listened to third-party publishers and kept us well informed
along the way, allowing us to plan early to bring great games to Xbox.”
“With Xbox we have the opportunity
to start new franchises such as ‘Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions™’ and extend our
proven franchises starting with ‘Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater’ and ‘Star Wars® Obi
Wan™’ from the Star Wars series by LucasArts Entertainment Company. The games
look and sound great on Xbox, and this can only be good for everyone.”
Building momentum for Microsoft’s
European launch, green light shows and celebratory events greeted gamers waiting
to get their hands on the future of video games. London’s Virgin megastores held
weeklong activities prior to launch, culminating in a midnight opening at which
the first Xbox was sold. Similar midnight events were held at the Mondadori in
Milan, Italy; at retailers across Spain; and in Melbourne, Australia.
About Xbox
Xbox (http://www.xbox.com/) is
Microsoft’s future-generation video game system that delivers the most powerful
games experiences ever. Xbox empowers game artists by giving them the technology
to fulfill their creative visions as never before, creating games that blur the
lines between fantasy and reality. Xbox is now available in North America,
Japan, Europe and Australia.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies
for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products
and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any
place and on any device.
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Microsoft, Xbox, Halo and Project
Gotham Racing are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp.
in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and
products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
For detailed information about
Microsoft and Xbox:
Xbox (English):
http://www.xbox.com/
Microsoft:
http://www.microsoft.com/
