Microsoft’s Xbox One won’t be available until Friday, November 22 — unless you happen to live near one of 75 Microsoft retail stores in the U.S. and Canada, in which case it’s available to play today. The demo systems will be available every day, from now through the Xbox One’s release.
Before you race out the door, you’ll of course need to live near a Microsoft store (you can check this here), and you’ll also want to know that Microsoft’s demonstrating Forza Motorsport 5, so whether you make the journey depends on your fondness for racers (though in this case, a highly esteemed one). Microsoft’s pitching this as an opportunity to try out the Xbox One’s new gamepad, so there’s that to consider, too.
If you do stop in, the company’s touting an in-store promotion between now and December 31: drop by any Microsoft Store and give the Xbox One a spin, and you’ll be entered to win the “Forza Motorsport 5 Living Room Sweepstakes.” The winnings are enticing — not a car, alas, which would have been ridiculous, but a Forza Motorsport playseat, a Polk Audio N1 Gaming SurroundBar, a Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel (Ferrari 458 Italia Edition) and a $2,000 gift card Microsoft says you can use “towards completing the living room with a big screen TV.”
The company unveiled a lengthy Xbox One interface demo this morning, which you can check out (with commentary) here.