Xbox One will work in 21 countries at launch

Xbox One will work in 21 countries at launch. Microsoft today published a list of the regions with Xbox Live support for the new console, which is required to activate and play games.

Games for Microsoft's next-gen system are "are for activation and distribution only in specified geographic regions," Microsoft's pre-order page notes, and you can find them at the bottom of this article.

Microsoft confirmed earlier that the consoles will be region locked, meaning each system can only play games published in its original region. And since the consoles must check in with Xbox Live at least once every 24 hours to play games regardless of their online functionality, the system can't be played outside of Xbox Live's supported regions.

Microsoft plans to expand Xbox One to "high-growth areas" of Asia around late 2014, according to an Engadget report. It also confirmed the console will launch in Japan but did not address timing or other details.

By comparison, Sony confirmed that PlayStation 4 is region-free and can be played with no online connection earlier this week--meaning anywhere you can play a PS3 now, you'll be able to play PS4.

• Australia
• Austria
• Belgium
• Brazil
• Canada
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Ireland
• Italy
• Mexico
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Norway
• Russia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom
• United States