14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft purportedly sold in excess of 100k units of the Xbox One in China during the home console's launch week.
The console was launched at the end of September in a number of 28 additional territories, among which China, India, Japan and others, bringing the total number of countries the Xbox One is officially available in to 41.
The home console was initially launched on November 22, 2013, in 13 different markets, and since then the company managed to sell over 5 million units worldwide, as of April 2014. For the time being, Microsoft is waiting for the holiday season to kick in, before revealing any more official numbers.
A solid launch in China
The sales figures come from an interview with Shanghai Media Group Vice President Zhang Dazhong, as reported by Kotaku, revealing the impressive feat and detailing some of Microsoft's expectations for the future.
The executive said that that the Xbox One pushed over 100k units since launch, including pre-sales from when the console went on pre-order.
Dazhong mentioned that Microsoft's official Chinese partner, BesTV, aimed to sell over one million Xbox One consoles in the region over the course of 2015.
For the time being, the computer entertainment system only has 10 available games in China, but Microsoft revealed that 70 additional titles were underway.
The Chinese market is a difficult one, with the Xbox One landing after a 14-year ban on all consoles, that was lifted earlier this year by the country's government.
Some hurdles still remain, as games sales are still regulated by the government, based on whether the products threaten China's national unity, sovereignity, or territorial integrity, promote drug use, include gambling-related features, and other such criteria.
But it is enough to help the console catch up?
The console has recently been launched in Japan, where it hasn't been doing all that well, managing to sell around 25k units in its launch week and around 5k more over the following weeks, bringing the grand total to a little over 30k devices sold.
The Xbox One has reportedly also been struggling in South Korea, where it has just been launched to a lukewarm reception, and many Asian news sites are speculating that China will be Microsoft's savior in the region.
Sony's PlayStation 4, in the meantime, is doing much better than its rival, with the company revealing in August this year that the 10 million units sold worldwide milestone was officially reached.
The head start that the PS4 got in this generation's race translated into a huge momentum, with most major game releases showing much greater sales volume on Sony's console than on any other platform, further cementing its lead.