Xbox Live to Launch in Singapore this April

Microsoft Singapore announced today that Xbox Live will launch in Singapore this April.  News of the launch month announcement follows a surge of anticipation and excitement as gamers brace themselves for Xbox Live, the world’s most intense unified online gaming service which is dedicated to offering game players a consistent, reliable and exhilarating experience.

“The level of anticipation for the Xbox Live service in Singapore is overwhelming,” said Alex Chua, Microsoft Singapore’s Home & Entertainment Division Manager. “Given Singapore’s high broadband penetration rates and the high awareness of Xbox Live in the market, we expect Xbox Live to be well received in Singapore.”

“Gaming in Singapore has reached wide acceptance, and feedback from the gaming community, retailers, broadband providers and other partners show a strong demand to participate in the Xbox Live community,” added Alex Chua.

Xbox Live is the only unified online gaming service that will connect gaming enthusiasts in Singapore with a global community of nearly 750,000 subscribers. 

There are five killer features that make the Xbox Live service an exhilarating, easy-to-use and social experience for gamers:

1.                        Voice supported by every Xbox Live game, which means you can shout winner chants when you win, collaborate on strategy or chat across games;

2.                        Finding your friends, no matter where they are playing or what game they are playing;

3.                        Gamertag across all games, which means you only need to sign up for the service once, something that will take all of five minutes;

4.                        Matchmaking to other players at your skill level;

5.                        Content downloads that extend the life of games.  Imagine new levels, characters, vehicles or weapons.

During the launch period, more than 30 Xbox Live-enabled games will be available in Singapore from highly acclaimed publishers such as Microsoft Games Studios, Activision, Ubi Soft and Tecmo.  Xbox Live-enabled games that will be available include hot titles like “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six 3”, “XIII” and “Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow” all from Ubi Soft; “Ninja Gaiden” and “Dead or Alive Online” from Tecmo in addition to top sporting titles from Microsoft Game Studios such as “Top Spin”, “NBA Inside Drive 2004”,  “Links 2004”, and “Amped 2” as well as “Project Gotham Racing 2”, “Counter Strike” and “Crimson Skies”.

With the launch of Xbox Live in April, Singapore, together with Taiwan and Hong Kong, will join 19 other Xbox Live-enabled countries around the world including Korea and Japan in Asia.  Xbox Live is the most successful paid online gaming service with more subscribers than any competitive paid online gaming site to date.

“In less than 15 months, Xbox Live has taken off with a community of nearly 750,000 people playing on Xbox Live worldwide and participating in more than 1.5 million gaming sessions every week,” said Alan Bowman, General Manager, Asia Pacific for Microsoft’s Home & Entertainment Division..  “That number is growing rapidly and with the addition of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore in April, and new games, new downloads, and surging enthusiasm among gamers for a unified online experience, we expect Xbox Live to reach one million subscribers in 24 countries by June 2004.”

For more information on Xbox Live in Singapore, go to http://www.xbox.com/zh-sg/live