PS4 Release Date Nearing In Japan: Special Edition 'Metal Gear Solid V' Console To Launch In March

The PlayStation 4 is heading to Japan on Feb. 22. Though Sony’s next-gen console launched last year in North America on Nov. 15 and on Nov. 29 in Europe, there’s still nearly a week to go before the system hits the Japanese market.

Sony plans to live-stream the event at the Sony Building in Ginza, a district of Chuo, Tokyo. The company also arranged a lineup of guest speakers including Japanese game director Hideo Kojima, Sony Worldwide Studios President Shuhei Yoshida, “Final Fantasy 14” producer “Naoki Yoshida” and Sony Group CEO Andrew House.

The live stream will kick off at 10:30 p.m. local Japan time on Feb. 21.

Sony has also announced a special edition “Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes” PS4 console, which will hit shelves in Japan on March 20. The “Fox Edition” PS4 will also come with the title for 41,979 yen ($413).

The next-gen console is currently out of stock around the world, but Sony promises that a new supply will arrive soon.

“PS4s are generally sold out at all retailers, although regular supply is refreshing the channel,” Sony said during a slide show displayed during a PlayStation media summit on Feb. 10 in Santa Monica, Calif. The brand also stated it has increased its market share among what it described as “heavy gamers.”

PlayStation also announced via Twitter on Feb. 10 that more than 100 games would be coming this year.

Sony President and Group CEO Andrew House revealed that 4.2 million PlayStation 4s had been sold worldwide as of Dec. 28, 2013. House made the announcement at the 2014 International CES in early January. The Japanese electronics brand added that the PS4 was its most successful console launch of all time.

"The momentum of the PS4 system keeps getting stronger, and we couldn't be more thrilled gamers worldwide are enjoying the incredibly immersive gaming experiences along with deep social capabilities and entertainment provided by our network," House stated. "After a remarkable launch, we look forward to bringing even more exciting content and continuing to explore the power of the PS4 system by adding new features and services, including PlayStation Now, in 2014." Sony also promised to bring many exciting titles to the PlayStation 4 in 2014, including “Infamous: Second Son,” “Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes,” “Destiny,” “Alien: Isolation,” “The Order 1886,” “Final Fantasy XV” and “Dying Light.”

The PlayStation 4, which launched in North America on Nov. 15, reportedly sold 1 million units within the first 24 hours of its launch, which led to 2.1 million consoles sold internationally as of early December.

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