Sunday 6 October 2013

Free as a Bird - What a Region-free Xbox One means for you



Of the numerous U-turns Microsoft have made in their build up to the Xbox One release, one of them that has largely gone ignored is the console is no longer region-locked. PS3-owners have always enjoyed a region-free console, but we on the 360 have been confined to games and DVDs sold in our area of the world.

With the Xbox One, this will no longer be the case, but what does that really mean for you?

For the sorry souls in countries like Sweden who aren’t getting the console until 2014, it will mean they can order it from a part of the world that is. It will also mean we will no longer be restricted on the games we can play. A prime example is American sports games. The main ones like NBA, NHL and the NFL are all released widely in this country, but if you’re a fan of baseball, the last one you could get a hold of in the UK was MLB 2K11 – the next three iterations were only released in the US and in countries where Baseball is a more prevalent sport.

If the Xbox 360 had been region-free, I would have ordered Activision’s NASCAR the Game from America instead of having to smile and try not to look jealous while playing NASCAR 09.

So whether it’s American sports that British people don’t understand, or weird Indie films you can only pick up on Blu-ray in Russia, whatever you’re into, a now region-free Xbox One has you covered.


Gentlemen, start your engines…….

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