Xbox One launch activities detailed for various locations across the globe
Xbox One launches next Friday, November 22, and Microsoft has many events planned around the world for fans to participate in, such as midnight retail openings, and a celebration in New York City's Times Square.
More than 10,000 retail locations in 13 countries will open their doors at 12.01am on November 22 with festivities kicking off in Auckland, NZ and continuing through Sydney, London, New York City and Los Angeles. The celebrations will be showcased in a live broadcast airing on Spike TV, beginning at 11 pm ET/8 pm PT, on Xbox.com and on Xbox Live.
“Today we invite millions of Xbox fans around the world to join us for the launch of Xbox One, beginning on November 21st as we count down the final hours to the launch of Xbox One,” said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate VP of marketing and strategy. “Xbox One will be the biggest launch in the history of Xbox and we can’t wait to celebrate with our fans.”
Global launch events are planned in major cities worldwide, including New York City, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Paris, Vienna, Sao Paulo, Toronto and Sydney with over 10,000 Midnight Madness Events planned at retailers such as: GAME, Tesco, Best Buy, EB Games, FNAC, GameStop, Walmart and the Microsoft retail stores.
Killer Instinct tournaments will also be held in six select Microsoft stores, in addition to celebrations at all the firm's retail locations.
Launch night officially kicks off in New Zealand where, in partnership with EB Games, Xbox will throw a party at Shed 10 in Auckland. Attendees can play launch titles, enjoy music and DJ sets and enter to win an Xbox One.
Australia's event takes place in Sydney Harbour with the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House as a backdrop.
The UK will celebrate the launch of Xbox One in Central London at an event featuring many surprise performances, celebrity appearances and gameplay. After the live event, at Area One in London, fans can play Xbox One games while waiting for midnight store opening.
Gamers, fans and YouTubers can participate in activities in Central Paris and Berlin, respectively, and Skin and Emis Killa will be participating in an exclusive launch event in Italy, in partnership with MTV.
Fans in Spain can play Xbox One games in Madrid’s Colon Square, and other landmark events are planned in Austria and Ireland. The massive Xbox One display will make its final stop in Toronto’ on launch night.
In the US, celebrations will take place in Times Square in New York City as zombies, Roman soldiers and supercars converge on the Best Buy Theatre. A performance by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis will be streamed outside the Best Buy Theatre, and attended by 1,000 fans who will experience the ultimate Xbox One launch.
The first 1000 people in line outside the Best Buy Theatre in Times Square who purchase an Xbox One or Xbox One game will enjoy the concert in-person and the opportunity to enjoy special gameplay experiences with Forza Motorsport 5, Ryse: Son of Rome, Dead Rising 3, Killer Instinct, and other Xbox One game titles.
Special guests will be present, including Stallion83, who is nearly achieving a 1 million Xbox Live Gamerscore and developer partners.
On the west coast, fans in Los Angeles are invited stop by Milk Studios which will be transformed with gameplay stations for Forza Motorsport 5, Ryse: Son of Rome, Dead Rising 3, Killer Instinct, and other Xbox One game titles.
The first 500 people to purchase an Xbox One or Xbox One game will enjoy an exclusive concert with deadmau5.
More information on the launch events can be found through Xbox Wire.
Xbox One will launch around the world in 13 markets, including the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, U.K., France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Ireland and Austria.