In amongst all the breaking news about Microsoft doing a reversal on its DRM policies, you might have missed one little detail of extreme importance for Australian gamers: the Xbox One has no regional restrictions. It is region free.
Today the headlines will all focus on the removal of ‘always on’, the removal of other restriction, but given the problems Australian have had with local pricing the news that the Xbox One will be region free maybe be the most important one.
In addition to buying a disc from a retailer, you can also download games from Xbox Live on day of release. If you choose to download your games, you will be able to play them offline just like you do today. Xbox One games will be playable on any Xbox One console — there will be no regional restrictions.
You can argue about the other policies, I don’t think it’s black or white, but region free? That’s a good thing. 100%.
Comments
33 responses to “In Case You Didn’t Notice: The Xbox One Is Now Region Free”
I did notice that. It’s fantastic news for us! I wonder if Nintendo will learn anything from this and… Hahahaha I’m sorry. I couldn’t keep a straight face there.
I would honestly settle for just getting back handheld region-free again.
I love Ninty, but region locking is the biggest thing that keeps me in hope of hackers cracking their systems wide open.
Yeah – it’s the main reason I haven’t picked up a wii u. Nintendo is probably the worst for localisation, and yet they are the only ones with region locking.
Grey imports for games here we come.
Do we know yet if accounts are still locked to regions, the way they are now? This might have implications for digital purchases…
I’m going to assume it’s going to stay the same as it is currently.
Yeah Microsoft like to play nice with the classification board and I think that has a lot to do with it.
The only content on the US Xbox Live which isn’t on the Aussie version is either content which Microsofts partners don’t want us to get or games which haven’t been rated by the Aussie classification board.
As long as they don’t do anything (IP tracking) to stop you from creating a fake second account and downloading US games which play on Aussie systems (State of Decay is great BTW) I’m not too fussed about it.
So, does that also remove the 21 country restriction? Or is it that it’s region-free as long as you live in one of the “21 markets” the console will be sold in at launch (http://www.xbox.com/en-AU/xbox-one/pre-order-xbox-one/disclaimer)?
Definitely want to hear more on that. It shouldn’t be – and I wouldn’t be surprised if the big backlash about military personnel getting some serious press is the reason for the shift.
Before that, I can imagine they were saying, “Well, at least we have the US market.” But you do something against the troops, in the US, and the mainstream media gets wind of it? Yeah. Good luck to ya.
I’m sure it will be, the US store offers games that aren’t classified in Aus yet like State of Decay, just make a US account and use PayPal you can still play them with your other gamer tag it’s what I’m doing now?
Sony is also region specific for Psn you have NTSC US store / EU store which Aus being Pal we share that one for some reason, and NTSCJ as well
Sweet! Now let me unplug the Kinect when I want to play a game that doesn’t utilise it and I may just be swayed! 🙂
You know you can basically deactivate it right?
No, you can put it on pause, in theory, but its still listening, but lets not go into that whole thing again.
No, let’s go into it, because so many people don’t seem to get it. 1. You’re not interesting enough that (even if it were possible) ‘The Man’ wants to watch you watch TV. 2. Even if ‘The Man’ was watching you watch TV, which he’s not going to, does it really matter? Or is this just one of those ‘principles’ that are so porous, ad-hoc and arbitrary? Google and Facebook are logging every site we visit and search we make, and yet we all still use them. 3. Oh wait, actually you can turn off ALL Kinect functionality if you’ve run out of tin-foil hats.
I’m surprised you’re not praising the NSA for their Prism program.
It’s already been reported that the way the 2 news sites who reported how PRISM works, actually got their facts wrong, and they even embellished some of their information
Just saying. The NSA no doubt want the information, but they never got it like the PRISM story first suggested
Nah, not going into it with a moron. Ciao!
Yeah but I work for an organisation that often discusses confidential information over at someones house. I wouldn’t less than honest Chinese competitors from figuring out away to hack into the kinect and listen in on our discussions.
I was amused by one poster on PAR who is in military intelligence who said kinect made the thing a no-go for him.
“As an Intel community member, it’s the ‘always on’ that is the most bothering. I don’t go downrange much, so I almost always have internet in a friendly area. But the idea of purposefully bugging my own command for entertainment is a huge red flag.”
I’d just tape the speakers up and face it the other way if I was *that* paranoid xD
I’d sit there in front of it and do all of my gaming while nude.
If anybody from the NSA/CIA/FBI/whatever IS out there watching me through it, they’d stop pretty quick 😛
Ok be nude, but remember the Kinect etiquette and turn around if you want to start some elbow wobble.
If you can ‘turn off ALL Kinect functionality’, then why does MS have such an issue with us being able to unplug it?
It makes no sense. If I can effectively render it useless by changing my preferences, I should NOT have to have it plugged in. Ever.
Because MS want to standardize motion and voice control, and give developer’s more reason to implement useful Kinect features into their games. There’s no guarantee that developer’s will try new Kinects stuff if the Kinect doesn’t have to be connected, at the very least.
It’s the same if someone said “I don’t have internet so why should I pay for a machine with an Ethernet port and 2 x WiFi Radios”? If there was a choice, then developer’s couldn’t count on everyone having the right equipment to play their games.
It’s there to create a standard.
Note: probably the worst analogy ever, but hey – that’s all I got
I wonder if you are just playing ignorance?
Because all MS needed to do was to ensure the kinect is bundled with every console, in order to make sure everyone has a kinect. To make kinect MANDATORY and impossible to unplug through? That has nothing to do with pleasing developers, and you know it.
So they’ve made a PS4.
Not yet, you can’t unplug the kinect.
I noticed it. Not enough to convince me to get one though.
Oh no! Now MS are going to get in trouble with all those “regulatory requirements” in different countries that required them to have region locking. Or did all those governments suddenly remove those regulatory requirements at the same time?
Nah! Just a small nondescript paper bag drop w/ some bills can fix that no problem!
Sony’s been doing that for years! xD
Interesting, this means I could be playing Killer Instinct this christmas after all 🙂
I find it beyond laughable that there are actually people out there who think all of that DRM rubbish was somehow benefiting them. They now have to get off their fat asses to put a disc in the console, can’t family share (boohoo) and whatever other excuse for vomiting up blatant fanboyism in order to argue and complain for no reason other than to start immature fights. Idiots. Mainstream idiots.
So………. you’re saying having to change discs to swap games is better than a simple voice command, or button press, to do the same thing; or that sharing a game with someone without them needing to pick up or return the disc……… is better?
Better than the implementation they planned.
There are good ways and bad ways of ushering in a brave new digital future. They chose some horrifically anti-consumer, protectionist, draconian ways to do it, and now they’re seeing the fallout.
Probably should’ve chosen the nicer, consumer-friendly, incremental way of ushering in the new digital future.
So the 21 countries limit is off? I can now use a uk account and play online like im doing with the 360 ??
Can I buy a Xbox One from the US and ship it over to Holland and would it still properly work? Ik have an adapter for US to EU plug. Somebody please let me know.
woop, can finally get japanese exclusives imported to play 😀
Region free My ASS, i have the italian store nd im not able to have apps like amazon istant or crackle this is so frustrating, wht is the difference fuckin microsoft
Oh wow, This is great. Originally was planning on the XBOne being the last console this gen for me with how poor the 360 was as a pal last gen since this means I can actually play next-gen 5pb games. How fun, though sadly the console versions are censored, but hey, those are the first releases anyways. Shame this couldn’t have happened when Robotics;Notes was made. Ah well, I might consider M$ in a higher light now especially since hearing from Dengeki that 5pb plans on pushing XBOne releases, however regardless it’ll still likely be the last for me this gen since I really want the Wii U Smash and PS4 just has more Japanese support that I appreciate. Though this is a great thing to know.
Hi. Can the xbox one system play DVD’s of all regions ???
Can someone please help me!!
I know nothing at all about XBox but brought my grandson a game for his XBox One online. It is NTSC and will not play on his console. Is there a way I can convert his game from NTSC to PAL?
Thanks for any help in advance, one very dissapointed grandson.
Cathy