PlayStation 4 will be region-free

The good news train keeps on chugging for Sony, with the announcement that PS4 is region-free.

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The good news train keeps on chugging along for Sony. The company has confirmed that PS4 will be region-free. (Presumably, this covers games only, and not Blu-ray movies.)

In the current generation, PS3 was largely region-free, with the odd exception of Persona 4: Arena. Xbox 360 was not region-free, although it did have a large number of games that could work in multiple territories. Region-free gaming is desirable amongst hardcore gamers, as that enables importing games that sometimes do not get picked up for localization.

Although PS4 will be region-free, Xbox One will be region-locked. Microsoft blames "country-specific regulatory guidelines" that, for some reason, Sony seems to be exempt from.

Andrew Yoon was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

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From The Chatty
  • reply
    June 11, 2013 12:46 AM

    Andrew Yoon posted a new article, PlayStation 4 will be region-free.

    The good news train keeps on chugging for Sony, with the announcement that PS4 is region-free.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 12:54 AM

      Awesome. Event though I guess that Bluray movies aren't included in that statement.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 1:52 AM

      I've been importing Blu Ray movies and Xbox 360 games from America and England over to Australia for years and never had a problem. Hopefully that stays the same.

      • reply
        June 11, 2013 1:56 AM

        Xbox 360 games from England ONLY though :/

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 1:57 AM

      Abrasion rejoice!

      This seals the deal for me as i'd wanna import games from outside Germany.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 4:50 AM

      I'm an American living in Japan, and would just like to say that my US PS3 plays all Japanese Blu-ray discs. So Blu-ray discs are currently region-free as well. I think it would be safe to assume that the PS4 won't be any different.

      Regardless, this is fantastic news!

      • reply
        June 11, 2013 5:03 AM

        Blu-ray discs aren't region free, but the Japan and USA regions are the same.

        • reply
          June 11, 2013 5:26 AM

          Ah, that's very interesting information. Thanks!

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          June 11, 2013 8:29 AM

          Yes, I think this is the case. They also both use NTSC, so it's a perfect fit.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 4:54 AM

      The main reason why Persona 4 Arena on PS3 was "region locked" was because the Japanese and North American versions were scheduled to release only one week apart, with both having English and Japanese localization. Atlus did that because they didn't want Japanese gamers importing the American version for less than it would cost to buy the Japanese version in retail.

      I like that the PS4 is region free, but does that mean that having a Japanese game releasing weeks after its Japanese release date won't happen anymore? That's up to the publishers to decide. P4A is a good game (great Arc System Works style fighter, and great story writing), but the stigma that Atlus received for this maneuver is fair, especially considering that P4A sold better than expected, which meant that their fears of massive importing were unfounded.

      • reply
        June 11, 2013 7:57 AM

        I went out of my way to buy that game used because of their decision to lock it.

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      June 11, 2013 7:15 AM

      Actually I would buy a PS4 if I could import it from the US for that reason alone.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 7:48 AM

      Playstation 4 comes with free blowjobs.

    • reply
      June 11, 2013 8:40 AM

      Pff, $ony
      Let’s give Microsoft their due: Xbox fans are easily the most fanatical of any video game audience, and the one customer group from which the firm derives Apple-style loyalty. At $100 more than the PS4, the Xbox One will sell out handily this holiday season, thanks solely to these fans. Microsoft can then lower the price in 2014 as the console moves to more markets. $ony doesn’t offer the same range of amazing media services that Microsoft does, and it certainly offers no TV integration capabilities, as is possible with the Xbox One. These markets are much bigger than the market for console video game players.

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