Xbox One Midnight Launch Party: Events, Locations, Details & More
The Xbox One will be released in 13 different countries worldwide at midnight local time this Friday November 22nd. For our New Zealand friends, it means that the Xbox One is available for sale right now! Your country is the lucky first of many to experience the newest generation of consoles for the first time today, with Australia soon to follow.
Microsoft and gaming retailers will be doing their best to make sure everyone has an awesome time either waiting in line for or attending events hosting the Xbox One. TV shows, music, handouts hundreds of gaming fans: it sounds like a fun time to be had. Want to join in? Here is where you can participate in one of the biggest Xbox One midnight launches or party events in the US, Canada and the United Kingdom.
USA
Xbox One Countdown To Launch – Filmed live on location in both New York and Los Angeles, Spike TV and GameTrailers.com are teaming up with Microsoft (in fairness for Sony’s PS4 All Access event last week) to air an hour of unmediated hype leading up to the Xbox One’s launch. Expect extended looks at launch titles, crowd+fan interaction plus musical performances from Macklemore and Ryan Lewis in NYC, while deadmau5 lays it down over in LA.
Killer Instinct Tournaments – Select Microsoft stores are hosting a competitive Killer Instinct tournament starting with signups on a first-come, first-served basis at 6 PM local time. Winners from each store will receive an Xbox One, all launch night titles, 1 year of Xbox Live and a next-day trip to Jacksonville to compete for nationwide KI champ, complete with Major Nelson-awarded championship belt. Here are the participating locations; check out the sub-header link above for location details.
- Burlington, MA
- Houston, TX
- Lone Tree, CO
- Orlando, FL (Florida Mall)
- Seattle, WA (UVillage)
- San Diego, CA
GameStop – The numbers aren’t clear for the Xbox One, but just like the PS4 it appears as though due to having so many franchised locations, there appears to be a larger amount of GameStop locations available and open for midnight release of the Xbox One than most other chains. Lines will be long, so make sure to find the nearest location so you can head out and finalize your transactions between 6 PM local and midnight. You don’t want to be waiting too long, so go down early if you can.
Best Buy – Same goes for this tech chain when it comes to arriving early. The company has a dedicated Xbox One midnight launch page, complete with links to locations in your area and answers to FAQ for just how they plan to orchestrate launch proceedings. Pre-order processing begins 2 hours before midnight, but each lineup starts whenever someone decides to prop a chair super early outside each store/department. Will that crazy gaming hero be you?
Microsoft Store – Why not pick up the Xbox One from the store that bears the parent company name? There are many to chose from, with each and every one of them open beyond normal hours to accommodate the midnight launch. That said, make sure to find the closest location to you and plan accordingly.
Walmart – As with many big electronic hardware releases, Walmart will be pushing many stores’ hours of operation to past midnight just for the Xbox One. However, it may not be every store that does this. Call your local store to make sure that they will be open for the midnight launch.
Onto the neighbors to the North…