Sony names PlayStation 4 launch dates

Sony has announced the launch dates for its PlayStation 4 console.

The next-generation games machine will become available in North America on 15 November and Europe on 29 November.

Its rival Microsoft has only said that the Xbox One will go on sale some time the same month.

Experts suggested that the latest revelation might help gain the Japanese firm headlines, but that it would be software that ultimately decided which company came out on top.

"Sony has made fantastic progress as it prepares to release the PS4, but the console still lacks a show-stopping exclusive game," said Rob Crossley, associate editor at the Computer and Video Games news site, following the announcement at the Gamescom trade fair in Cologne.

"That will certainly come eventually, but some might argue the most crucial time is now.

"Sony's press conference once again demonstrated the company has an enviably deep and meaningful relationship with the indie developer community... but Sony executives will no doubt be feeling uneasy as the list of major Xbox One exclusive games continues to grow."

Lewis Ward, a games expert at the consultants IDC, agreed that at this point the launch date was of limited importance.

"If it turns out that the PS4 goes on sale a week before the Xbox One, for example, then clearly Sony will have time to itself to make some hay," he said.

"But until we know when Microsoft is going to land I'm not sure what putting the date out there does much beyond making a news story - it won't change people's buying intentions."

:story: BBC News