Microsoft released its highly anticipated Xbox One a week following Sony's Playstation 4 launch, Friday.
While unavailable for purchase for some time on many online stores, retailers such as Best Buy and Target also reported a short supply.
Microsoft said it has sold over 1 million Xbox One units within 24 hours of its market debut and 24-year-old New Zealander Dan Livingstone became the first person in the world to officially own an Xbox One.
Microsoft's Xbox One features an 8-core AMD processor, Radeon GPU and 500GB of storage space. Selling for $100 more than Sony's machine, the console also comes with a vastly updated Kinect camera/mic peripheral.
Making its public debut in May, the Xbox One has dealt with both hype and controversy. It once had been a tough sell for Microsoft following previous restrictions built-in for used games (something Sony mocked during its E3 conference) and plans for making the console always online. Those policies were later changed following major uproar from the gaming community.
However, everything boils down to exclusive titles and this is an area where Microsoft may have a leg up on Sony's price advantage. Xbox One exclusive titles like Forza, Dead Rising 3 and Killer Instinct have earned decent reviews. Sony's Playstation 4 exclusives Knack and Killzone:Shadow Fall hasn't faired as well with critics.
Moreover, Microsoft isn't content with Xbox One being just a game console - it wants Xbox One to close the gap between gaming and home entertainment centers.
"One of the things that has been just so amazing for the Xbox One is the passion of the fans about play and Xbox Live," said Microsoft's corporate vice president Marc Whitten. "Everything we do is really about how we build new experiences for them. It's awesome."
As Sony and Microsoft slug it out for first place this console generation, Nintendo is still struggling to maintain relevance for the Wii U.
